Hypothesis - 'Unskilled workers or workers with low qualifications are working purely for the money'

University Degree Business and Administrative studies

Hypothesis

‘Unskilled workers or workers with low qualifications are working purely for the money’

My hypothesis is based on motivation in general. To test this hypothesis I need to interview people in the same organisation/business, but in different jobs. I am doing this to see it jobs that are higher paid or give the worker pride (e.g. a till operator opposed to the director of the shop) gives each worker more motivation. By asking people in the same line of work I am hoping to find that as the wages go down, as do the standards of qualifications and see if that as the wages go down, the incentives to work change.

Tapping into, understanding and focusing on people’s individual inner motivations is the surest way for managers to develop a productive workforce.

I have chosen this hypothesis because people with highly paid jobs have most likely worked hard though years of training/university etc. to get the degree/training they need to specialise in to get a particular job. Fewer people go through these years of training and work because it does not earn money – they could be out working and getting paid. In a way the hard work and no pay in re-paid and if not exceeded in a persons lifetime. This is because people can get higher paid jobs due to their higher qualifications. As there are fewer people with these qualifications, the people that do have them are more valuable to the company/business. The people without these qualifications, however, do not get (in most cases) as highly paid. Unskilled jobs can be done by anyone, which means workers are easily replaceable and are not of great value. From this knowledge I have drawn my hypothesis that unskilled workers are only motivated by money and not job satisfaction etc.

Introduction

Most people feel the need to work to enjoy a higher standard of living than they would do if they were on benefits. Some people are motivated by security, others want control, some are driven by accomplishment, others seek involvement, some want to belong and others want to develop. Embracing on and acting upon this understanding of what motivates people (new hires or existing employees) is certainly more complicated to deal with than using a broad stroke, a “one size fits all” approach. But how these motivations are responded to (or ignored) sets the tone for the entire organisation. ...

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Introduction

Though each person has specific needs, drives, aspirations, and capabilities, at varying degrees of intensity, peoples basic needs are the same, as illustrated by Abraham Maslow in the following model:

Maslow explains the Hierarchy of Needs as applied to workers roughly as follows:

Physiological Needs

Basic physical needs: the ability to acquire food, shelter, clothing and other basics to survive.

Safety Needs

A safe and non-threatening work environment, job security, safe equipment and installations.

Social Needs

Contact and friendship with fellow workers, social activities and opportunities.

Esteem Needs

Recognition, acknowledgements, rewards.

Self-Actualisation

Realising one’s dreams and potential, reaching the heights of one’s gifts and talents. It is only when these needs are met that workers are morally, emotionally, and even physically ready to satisfy the needs of the employer and the customers.

Worker motivation must also be viewed from the two perspectives:

Inner Drives
Outer (external) motivators

A person’s inner drives push and propels him/her towards an employer, a particular job, career, line of study, or other activity (such as travel or recreation). It is these drives that Maslow outlines in his hierarchy of needs, and which must be understood and used as guidelines in efforts to help employees to feel motivated.

The outer (external) motivators are the mirror image the employer or outside world offers in response to the inner drives. In order to attract the “cream of the crop” of available workers, same as in his/her dealings with customers, the employer not only tries to satisfy these basic needs, but to exceed them.

Motivation is very important in a workplace. The more motivation there is, the fewer absentees there are, and therefore the more productive the company/business can be. Money is sometimes used as a motivator by using payment schemes in a business, including profit sharing schemes and bonus schemes, which are designed to increase productivity.