Finding Cultural Differences and Motivation Factors of Foreign Construction Workers

Sangyong Kim,Honggyu Cho,Jin-Dong Kim,Yoonseok Shin,Gwang-Hee Kim

doi:10.4236/jbcpr.2015.32005

Abstract

The rapid inflow of foreign construction workers caused the reduction of labor productivity in the construction industry due to communication problems and cultural differences. This may lead to shortage of productivity and quality reduction. The cultural differences and motivation factors of foreign construction workers must be considered for effective and systematic manpower management. It is necessary to study foreign construction workers’ productivity factors that reflect cultural differences and motivation as the productivity and quality of the construction industry are subject to the work efficiency and high dependence of manpower. This study aimed to suggest effective productivity management plan considering cultural differences and motivation factors of foreign construction workers. For this purpose, the desire and motivation factors affecting on Korean workers and foreign construction workers were analyzed and the comparative analysis on the requirements by nationality was carried out. Accordingly, it is expected that this could contribute to the improvement of productivity, construction period, quality, safety and manpower management.

Highlights

Younger workers tend to avoid the construction sector, as it is considered one of the 3D (difficult, dirty, andHow to cite this paper: Kim, S., Kim, J.-D., Cho, H., Shin, Y. and Kim, G.-H. (2015) Finding Cultural Differences and Motivation Factors of Foreign Construction Workers
We identified motivation factors that were influenced by the cultural differences of the laborers, and their effect on productivity
To identify motivation factors related to productivity, we summarize the motivation factors found in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory, Alderfer’s Existence Relatedness Growth (ERG) theory, Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory, and Murray’s needs and pressure theory

Summary

Introduction

Younger workers tend to avoid the construction sector, as it is considered one of the 3D (difficult, dirty, andHow to cite this paper: Kim, S., Kim, J.-D., Cho, H., Shin, Y. and Kim, G.-H. (2015) Finding Cultural Differences and Motivation Factors of Foreign Construction Workers. Against this background, the shortfall in the workforce has led to an increase in the employment of foreign laborers. Beyond the economic realm, there are issues related to the settlement and adjustment of foreign workers, which must be dealt with from either a social or a diplomatic perspective [2]. Failure to address these problems may lead to social issues in the future. There is an urgent need for research to improve the construction productivity of foreign laborers by management plan, based on an understanding of the cultural differences of laborers from different countries

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