The effects of employee empowerment on employee job satisfaction

Abstract

Purpose -The main objective of this study is to determine the impact of employee empowerment on job satisfaction. To serve this purpose, empowerment is taken into consideration as two dimensionsi.e. behavioral and psychological -and the effect of employee empowerment on the level of job satisfaction was examined by taking these two dimensions into consideration as a whole and separately. Design/methodology/approach -A questionnaire was employed in order to collect data on job satisfaction as well as behavioral and psychological empowerment. The data collected were analyzed through correlation and regression analyses. The study covered 1,854 participants employed at five-star hotels in Turkey. Findings -The findings suggest that the most positive aspects related to job satisfaction are relations with the colleagues and physical conditions, while the most negative aspect is the wage issue, i.e. unfair payment. Furthermore, correlation and regression analyses indicate that psychological and behavioral empowerment has a significant effect on job satisfaction, and the effect is much greater when psychological and behavioral empowerment are taken as a whole.Research limitations/implications -The major limitation of this study is that it covers the employees of five-star hotels only. Another important limitation of the study is the exclusion of variables mentioned in the literature. This apart, it is thought that the study will provide some insights for managers in terms of enhancing job satisfaction and the effect of empowerment on job satisfaction as well as making a contribution to the literature. Originality/value -Studies into the relation between employee empowerment and job satisfaction on the whole focus on only one aspect of empowerment, i.e. either behavioral empowerment or psychological empowerment. This study incorporates behavioral and psychological empowerment together as the components of empowerment, unlike previous studies in the literature, in determining their effect on job satisfaction.

An empirical study on factors effecting the job satisfaction of employees in the hospitality industry - a case of Danang city, Vietnam

“…In addition, pay and promotion potential directly impact job satisfaction (SEs = 0.206; p = 0.000), also consistent with earlier research (e.g., Lam et al, 2001;Moyes et al, 2006;Gu and Siu, 2009;Gallardo et al, 2009). In addition, job satisfaction is positively impacted by fairness (SEs = 0.163; p = 0.005), also confirming previous studies (e.g., Nadiri and Tanova, 2010), and as well as workplace relationships (SEs = 0.175; p = 0.002), consistent with other works (e.g., Mazler and Renzl, 2007;Gu and Siu, 2009;Pelit et al, 2011;Arasli and Baradarani, 2014). …”

“…Four hypotheses, including H1, H2, H3 and H4, were found to be significant at p < 0.05. As hypothesized, workplace environment (SEs = 0.160; p = 0.006) has a direct, positive effect on job satisfaction, as identified by previous studies (e.g., Upchurch et al, 2000;Moyes et al, 2006;Gallardo et al, 2009;Pelit et al, 2011). In addition, pay and promotion potential directly impact job satisfaction (SEs = 0.206; p = 0.000), also consistent with earlier research (e.g., Lam et al, 2001;Moyes et al, 2006;Gu and Siu, 2009;Gallardo et al, 2009).…”

“…With regard to the hospitality industry, the dimensions affecting the job satisfaction of hotel workers include wages, safety, and working conditions (Upchurch et al, 2000); level of education; the time working in the business; maturity and promotion prospects (Lam et al, 2001); work environment, training and development, supervision, pay and benefits package (Moyes et al, 2006;Gallardo et al, 2009); colleagues, managers, development, the content of work, salary, responsibilities, time and maturity (Mazler and Renzl, 2007); training opportunities, wages, benefits, and perceived support (Gu and Siu, 2009); organizational justice and fairness (Nadiri and Tanova, 2010); colleagues, physical working conditions, salary and behavioral empowerment (Pelit et al, 2011); organizational trust (Lee et al, 2013); leadership, management by facts, employee orientation, and continued improvement (Arasli and Baradarani, 2014).…”

The Influence of Employee Empowerment on Employee Job Satisfaction in Five-Star Hotels in Jordan

“…Thus, the previous studies have highlighted the significant relationship between empowerment and job satisfaction (e.g. Fulford and Enz, 1995;Spreitzer, 1996;Hancer and George, 2003;Hechanova et al, 2006;Dickson and Lorenz, 2009;Patah et al, 2009;Gazzoli et al, 2010;Pelit et al, 2011). When employees perceived they are empowered and that lead them to have more positive emotional states and their overall attachment to the environment of work (Fulford and Enz, 1995).When empowerment is implemented properly at workplace, it can be effective in improving job satisfaction, performance and productivity (Sashkin, 1984), and therefore empowerment may contribute to enhance job satisfaction (Fulford and Enz, 1995).…”

“…participate in decision-making, provide new ideas, and present better ways of doing work), and those employees are more motivated and more productive in the work (Kemp and Dwyer, 2001). Research suggests that empowerment can enhance job satisfaction (Salazar et al, 2006), particularly in the hospitality industry (Hechanova et al, 2006;Dickson and Lorenz, 2009;Patah et al, 2009;Gazzoli et al, 2010;Pelit et al, 2011) and thus a way to improve workplace environments, reduce employee turnover, and help organisations function effectively (Erstad, 1997).…”