Organizational work factors among workers and supervisors in export processing zones which support global markets

Abstract

This is an investigation of the interaction between organizational and management factors at work for both workers and supervisors in the manufacturing sector. Survey was done in a sample consisted of 23 establishments, 630 workers, and 47 supervisors, meanwhile 10 focus group discussions (FGDs) for workers, and 5 FGDs for supervisors. Workers and supervisors alike reported illnesses and job dissatisfaction. Survey showed that the most prevalent issues among workers were: the need to upgrade skills (76.3%), pressured in doing work (60.5%), fast paced work (60.5%), repetitive work (63%), and that work is both physically and mentally tiring (59.7%). On the other hand, supervisors described their work as challenging and stimulating (66%), needed regular upgrading of skills (46.8%), and needed literacy on information technology (31.9%). Focus group discussions showed that workers and supervisors were confronted with stress, fast-paced work, the need to upgrade skills due to accommodation of information technology into the work production, fatigue, re-engineering and downsizing by management, low job control and difficult worker-supervisor relationship. This study was able to show that health of workers and supervisors were affected by both organizational and management factors at work.