Job satisfaction and job engagement: Empirical evidence from food safety regulators in Guangdong, China

Abstract

Food safety incidents continue to be reported frequently in China. Chinese food safety regulators are challenged with extensive regulatory tasks and increasing pressure from all parties. These regulators need to be recognized as the key factor affecting the regulation of food safety by the Chinese administration. Therefore, this research explores the internal mechanisms of food safety regulator job satisfaction and job engagement, applying a structural equation model. Survey data were collected from 1022 food safety regulators of Guangdong, China for analysis. The results indicate that the degree of job satisfaction and job engagement of food safety regulators in Guangdong was at an intermediate level. Compared with their satisfaction with organizational environment and organizational management, their satisfaction with their work characteristics is the important factor influencing job engagement. To strengthen food safety human resource management, a promotion mechanism and salary system for regulators should be improved in the future. In addition, regulatory enforcement conditions and environments should be optimized in order to enhance regulators' job satisfaction and engagement, thereby, ultimately improving the supervisory level of Chinese food safety control.