Preferences for Job Attributes of Blue-Collar Employees in the Public Sector

Abstract

It is important to understand career motivations of employees. Such is the case for potential incumbents (e.g., career choice), incumbents (e.g., career choice), and organizations (e.g., recruiting, selection) (1, 4 ) . The present purpose was to describe values, in terms of preferences for job attributes of a group of blue-collar employees in the public sector. Subpurposes were to investigate interrater reliability of self-preferences and preferences attributed to others and the relationship between own and others' preferences. Participants were 90 individuals employed in Custodial Services Unit or Buildings and Grounds Maintenance Unit of the Physical Plant Department of a large public urban university in a major city. The dependent variable was job preferences ( 3 ) . Respondents ranked 10 job attributes under two conditions, respondent's preferences (self) and respondent's perception of others' preferences (ochers). The 10 job attributes were Advancement, Benefits, Company, Coworkers, Hours, Pay, Security, Supervisor, Type of Work, and Working Conditions. Order of self-preference was Pay (most preferred), Benefits, Advancement, Security, Company, Supervisor. Hours, Working Conditions, Type of Work, and Coworkers (least preferred). W was .21 ( p < .01). Order of others' preferences was Pay (most preferred), Benefits, Advancement, Hours, Security, Supervisor, Type of Work, Company, Working Conditions, and Coworkers (least preferred). W was .30 ( p < .01). Rho (self and others) was .86 ( p < .01). Implications for personnel management in the public sector vis-a-vis potential incumbents, incurnbenrs, and organizations are suggested-particularly regarding high ranking of Pay and low ranking of Type of Work and Coworkers (2 , 5, 6, 7 ) . Own and others' preferences showed adequate interrater reliability. There was a high oositive correlation between hierarchies of oreferences. For these 90 blue-collar employees in the public sector, there were rela;ively stable hierarchies of own and others' preferences; hierarchies were positively related. One caveat regarding generalization from these findings to other settings is emphasized. It is recommended the study be replicated in other organizations, public and private, with these and other categories of employees.