Changing Paradigms in Indian Business 2017, Vol.1, Issue.1, pp.

67-75

A STUDY ON QUALITY OF WORK LIFE AMONG EMPLOYEES OF

NATIONALIZED BANKS IN TANJURE DISTRICT, TAMIL NADU

Author:K.SARAVANAN Research Scholar

Co Author:Dr.K.MuthuLakshmi Associate Professor of Commerce
Bishop Heber College(Autonomous)Trichy -17

Abstract

To-day the banking sector is witnessing a sea-change, which are both exciting and
challenging. The productivity of the banking industry is associated with the efficiency of the
employees. A high quality of work life is essential for organizations to continue to attract and
retain employees. Quality of work life is a process in which organizations recognize their
responsibility to develop job and working conditions that are excellent for the employee and
organization. An effective leader influences the followers in a desired manner to achieve
goals. It is evident from the literature different leadership styles may affect organization
effectiveness and performance. The interventions of quality of work life will effectively
utilize the employee potentials by ensuring great participation and involvement of workers.
This paper focuses and analyses the literature findings which involves quality of work life
and its practice, measurement tools and techniques to improve it.

Keywords: Banking, Quality of work life, Employees, Performance

INTRODUCTION

Quality of Work Life refers to the favorableness of job environment for people. Walton
1985 stated much broader concept of QWL encompassing it in eight categories wiz adequate
and fair compensation, safe and healthy working conditions, opportunity to use and develop
human capacities, opportunity for continued career growth and security, social integration in
work place, constitutionalism in work organization, balanced role of work in total life space,
social relevance of work . QWL is a process by which organization respond to employees for
developing mechanism to allow them to share fully in making decisions that design their life
at work.” by Walton.

Banking Sectors in India play a significant role in the development of the Indian economy
and it is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Evidence from across the world
suggests that a sound and evolved banking system is required for sustained economic
development. India has a better banking system than other development countries, but there
are several issues that need to be ironed out. Banking is a sector that reached out to almost all
sections of the society. It is the life – blood of economic progress.

Since the nationalized banks are service organizations, their productivity and
performance depend on the performance of its personal. The increasing pace of technological
change is making manpower the key ingredient to the nation’s wellbeing and growth. Capital
and natural resource endowments are undoubtedly vital factors that help to create a large
national product, but it is the labourer- the human resource –who contributes most to the
contemporary “Wealth of Nations”. Thus expansion and improvement of the labour force are
the sine qua non of continued increase in the output of the organizations, labour is a major
beneficiary of as well as chief contributor to the prosperity and growth of the organisation.
Nationalized banks enrol a large number of employees, both men and women. Prosperity of
these banks depends of the performance of the employees, which on turn depends on their
satisfaction with their jobs. Job satisfaction is linked to productivity, motivation, mental and
physical health and general satisfaction in life, lack of it accounts for absenteeism, tardiness,
accidents and the like.

Meaning and Concept of QWL

Quality of work life (QWL) has become one of the most important issues these days in
every organisation. Employees are the force behind every successful organisation. No
organisation can become successful with technology only, because for the use of technology
also, organisations need to have strong work force. Quality of work life was the term actually
introduced in the late 1960’s.from that period till now the term is gaining more and more
importance everywhere, at every work place. Initially quality of work life was focusing on
the effects of employment on the general well being and the health of the workers. But now
its focus has been changed. Every organisation need to give good environment to their
workers including all financial and non financial incentives so that they can retain their
employees for the longer period and for the achievement of the organisational goals. The
factors that influence and decide the quality of work life are attitude, environment,
opportunities, nature lf job, people, stress level, career prospects, challenges, growth and
development and risk involved and reward.

Quality of work life (QWL) refers to the level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction with one’s
career. Those who enjoy their careers are said to have a high QWL, while those who are
unhappy or whose needs are otherwise unfilled are said to have a low QWL. QWL is the
quality of relationship between employees and total work environment, concern for the
impact of work on individuals as well as on organisation effectiveness and the idea of
participation in organisational problems-solving and decision-making in concurrence with the
ascertained importance of an employee’s role in the service exchange process.

Quality of work life involves job security, good working conditions, adequate and fair
compensations and equal employment opportunity all together. QWL aims to meet the twin
goals of enhanced effectiveness of organisation and improved quality of life at work for
employees.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

 Quality Work Life means having good supervision, good working conditions, good pay
and benefits and an interesting challenging and rewinding job. High quality work life is
sought through an employee relations philosophy that encourages the use of quality work life
efforts which are systematic attempts by an organization to give workers greater opportunities
to affect their jobs and their contributions to the organization’s overall effectiveness.

It is the responsibility of the management to develop QWL among the employees to

reduce the evil effects of lower level of QWL. Banking is essentially a high contact service
industry and there is a close interaction between service provider and the customers in the
traditional banking scenario. An attempt will be made to study the quality of work life of
employees in Nationalized Banks.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Gani and Riyaz Ahmad,s (1995) study revealed that not only the workers but the
management also perceives that QWL in the organization is on the whole not satisfactory.
Both workers and the management give greater importance to work environment factors.
Both of them express that working environment is still far from satisfaction. There are certain
reasons identified for fire- fighting approach adopted by the management, which has added
fuel to the fire. Employee perception of their QWL is heavily affected by the treatment they
receive from their supervisors and managers.

According to Lan, R.S.M et.al (1998), QWL is related to (a) job satisfaction, humanization of
work or individualizing the organization and (b) organisational development programme.
According to their study, there are two types of determinants of the QWL. They are(a) those,
which influence the importance of a particular need to an individual, and (b) those, which
satisfy or frustrate that need. Thus, QWL is determined by the interaction of personal and
situational factors. It implies that the basic strategy for improving the QWL is first to identify
and try to satisfy people are important needs, through their experience in their work
environments.

Md. Mosharraf Hossain and Md. Tariqual Islam (1999) have pointed out that their research
results reveal that there is a significant positive correlation between QWL and job
satisfaction. A significant positive correlation is also found between QWL and job
performance. QWL has the highest contribution to performance. Perceptions of QWL and job
satisfaction are significantly higher among the respondents in the small-scale organization
than large-scale organization.

Hanita Sarah Saad et.al (2008) their aim of the study was to find the employee‟s perception
about their work-life quality in the university. 251 employees in the university were surveyed
for the study. Ten variables to measure quality of work life (QWL) are examined namely
support from organization, work-family conflict, relationship with peers, self competence,
impact on job, meaningfulness of job, optimism on organizational change, autonomy, access
to resources and time control. All these variables are tested to establish their relationship with
job satisfaction.
Daljeet Kaur(2010) in his study has stated that employees of ICICI bank Ltd in Chandigarh
Region are happy with the working conditions of the bank. They feel that they are safe and
secure in bank. They feel that bank should provide their own transport facilities for the staff.
However, the dissatisfaction among them is for the less growth opportunities. They are not
provided with extra care facilities like health camps etc. They are not happy with the way of
performance appraisal and feel that their management is not flexible with their social
responsibilities and hence they are less satisfied with their jobs.

Sabrirajan and Geethanjani (2011) in their paper “Study on quality of work life and
organisational performance among the employees of public and private banks in Dindigul”
discussed with the term Quality of Work Life (QWL) was initially introduced in the late
1960’s as a way of focusing on the quality of a person’s on-the-job experience. However,
there are generally identified issues related to QWL like pay and stability of employment,
occupational stress, alternative work schedule, recognition, participative management,
grievance procedure etc. these measures will affect organizational performance in terms of
human resource management. Organizations are expected to maintain high QWL in order to
maintain high level organizational performance. This study is an attempt to investigate the
extent to which the QWL among the employees of Public and Private Banks in Dindigul
influences the performance of Banks.

Since (2012) in his study “Factors Affecting Quality of Work Life: Empirical Evidence From
AIndeian Organisations” undertaken explored the factors of quality of working-life
experiences in organizations. The study focused on 100 employees holding middle
managerial positions in various organizations. The three emerging factors were “ relationship
sustenance orientation”, “futuristic and professional orientation” and “self-deterministic and
systemic orientation”. The results indicate that these factors have substantial roles to play in
satiating the needs of the employees and how at middle managerial level different aspects are
valued and employed for developing a unique and inimitable quality of working life within
their socio-technical system for eliciting favourable job-related response.

OBJECTIVES

1. To measure the level of quality of work life and examine the extent of variations in
QWL of bank employees in Tanjure.
2. To study the relationship between the socio economic variables of employees and
their level of QWL
3. To identify the dimensions of QWL of employees in nationalized banks
4. To analyse and compare the factors of job satisfaction of employees with different
levels of QWL
5. To offer suitable suggestions to improve QWL of employees in nationalized banks
based on the findings of the study.

METHODOLOGY
 The research design was a combination of quantitative research design so as to obtain
detailed information that helped the researcher to establish the relationship between QWL of
employees in Nationalized banks- Tanjure District.

Sampling Techniques
The sampling technique adopted was Stratified Random Sampling Technique. The
population for this study consists of the bank employees in the Tanjure District. The choice of
respondents included in the survey is chosen at random and 50 bank employees were taken
up as the sample.
Data Collection
i) Primary data- Primary data was collected through personal interviews and use of
questionnaires to gather accurate information.
ii) Secondary data- Secondary data was obtained from available sources such as text
books, journals, on-line published articles, information from the local newspapers
and internet search engines among others.

Data Processing Analysis and presentation

The data collected using the questionnaires and interview guides was edited, coded and
tabulated for completeness and accuracy. First raw data gathered was analyzed using Simple
Random Sample and the analysis has been interpreted with statistical like; Percentage
analysis.
Limitations
1. The study may be applicable only to Nationalized Banks in Tanjure District.
2. The survey method which was adopted for collected the data in this study has is its own
limitations.
4. The duration of the study is limited. So it may not be able to cover the entire scope.

Analysis and Interpretation

Table: 1 Employees’ opinion about their duties and responsibilities

S. Opinion No. of Respondents Percentage
No Level
1 STRONGLY AGREE 16 32
2 AGREE 26 52
3 CAN'T SAY 1 2
4 DISAGREE 4 8
5 STRONGLY DISAGREE 3 6
Total 50 100

Inference The above table shows that the employees opinion about their duties and
responsibilities. Among 50 respondents, 32% of the respondents are strongly agree, 52% of
the respondents are agree, 2% of the respondents are cannot say anything, 8% of the
respondents are disagree and 6% of the respondents are strongly agree.
Table: 2 Employees’ opinion about their goals and objectives
S. Opinion No. of Respondents Percentage
No Level
1 STRONGLY AGREE 15 30
2 AGREE 25 50
3 CAN'T SAY 2 4
4 DISAGREE 6 12
5 STRONGLY DISAGREE 2 4
Total 50 100

Inference The above table shows that the employees opinion about their goals and objectives.
Among 50 respondents, 30% of the respondents are strongly agree, 50% of the respondents
are agree, 4% of the respondents are cannot say anything, 12% of the respondents are
disagree and 4% of the respondents are strongly agree.

Table: 3 Balance between work life and home life

S. Opinion No. of Respondents Percentage
No Level
1 STRONGLY AGREE 14 28
2 AGREE 24 48
3 CAN'T SAY 3 6
4 DISAGREE 6 12
5 STRONGLY DISAGREE 3 6
Total 50 100

Inference The above table shows that the employees opinion about their work life and home
life. Among 50 respondents, 28% of the respondents are strongly agree, 48% of the
respondents are agree, 6% of the respondents are can’t say anything, 12% of the respondents
are disagree and 6% of the respondents are strongly disagree.

Table: 4 Employees opinion about their organization

S. Opinion No. of Respondents Percentage
No Level
1 STRONGLY AGREE 13 26
2 AGREE 27 54
3 CAN'T SAY 1 2
4 DISAGREE 5 10
5 STRONGLY DISAGREE 4 8
Total 50 100

Inference The above table shows that the employee’s opinion about their organization is
good. Among 50 respondents, 26% of the respondents are strongly agree, 54% of the
respondents are agree, 2% of the respondents are can’t say anything 10% of the respondents
are disagree and 8% of the respondents are strongly disagree.

Table: 5 Employees opinion about their skills and innovativeness

S. Opinion No. of Respondents Percentage
No Level
1 STRONGLY AGREE 11 22
2 AGREE 28 56
3 CAN'T SAY 2 4
4 DISAGREE 6 12
5 STRONGLY DISAGREE 3 6
Total 50 100

Inference The above table shows that the employees opinion about their skills and
innovativeness. Among 50 respondents, 22% of the respondents are strongly agree, 56% of
the respondents are agree, 4% of the respondents are cannot say anything, 12% of the
respondents are disagree and 6% of the respondents are strongly agree.

Table: 6 Family supports to work commitment

S. Opinion No. of Respondents Percentage
No Level
1 STRONGLY AGREE 12 24
2 AGREE 29 58
3 CAN'T SAY - -
4 DISAGREE 4 8
5 STRONGLY DISAGREE 5 10
Total 50 100

Inference The above table shows that the employee’s opinion about their family supports to
work commitment. Among 50 respondents, 24% of the respondents are strongly agree, 58%
of the respondents are agree, 8% of the respondents are disagree and 10% of the respondents
are strongly agree.

Findings and Suggestions

1. 52%of the respondents have agreed that they clear about their duties and responsibilities.
2. 50%of the respondents have agreed that they clear about goals and objectives of their
department and organization.
3. 48%of the respondents have agreed that they able to achieve a healthy balance between
their work and home life.
4. 54% of the respondents have agreed that they would recommend this organization as a
good one to work for.
5. 56%of the respondents have agreed that they encouraged by their superior to develop
their skills and innovativeness.
6. 58%of the respondents have agreed that their family supports my work commitments.

Suggestions
1. Employees should be given a challenging job because it motivates them and
influences their quality of work life. Challenging job gives life to the work, utilizes
human capabilities to the fullest extent and provides opportunity for intellectual
satisfaction. It should be kept in mind that the workload should be in line with
employee’s capabilities and resources.
2. Appropriate pay strategies could be evolved to give fair and adequate compensation to
the employees. Management should make attempts to adjust pay scales according to
the changes in cost of living from time to time.
3. Banks should have HRD cell at corporate and regional/divisional offices, which carry
on various functions of HRD.
4. Adequate number of staff should be recruited. Vacant posts should be filled up as
soon as possible. While recruiting the ratio of male and female staff should be even.
Recruitment policy should be associated with the requirements. There should be no
reservation for selection of employees. Only competent persons should be selected.
5. Safety measures can be improved in the organization so that employee’s safety could
be ensured. Worn out machinery, furniture and fixtures should be disposed as quick as
possible.

Conclusion
Quality of working life is not a concept, that deals with one area but it has been observed as
incorporating a hierarchy of concepts that not only include work based factors such as job
satisfaction, satisfaction with par and relationships with work colleagues, but also factors that
broadly focuses on life satisfaction and general feelings of well being. To retain a good talent
in the organization it is important for the organization to have high QWL and low stress level.
There is considerable evidence from this study that bank employees of nationalized are truly
empowered. We can deduce from the study that majority of the respondents have agreed with
the statements of QWL dimensions. Among ten dimensions considered for the study nature of
service has a significant influence on safe and healthy working conditions, opportunity for
growth and development, social integration in the work force, constitutionalism in the banks
and participation in management. It is to be noted here that among the list of QWL
dimensions, nature of job is of high influence more than other dimensions. It is also found
that QWL score was different among the nationalized bank employees. Respondents of all
categories have comparatively agreed more with the factors affecting work life balance. They
prefer flexible working hours and job sharing to balance their work and family.

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