Employees In Israel Research Articles

Differences of motivation profile of public sector employees in Israel depending on age and job seniority

The problem of differences of labour motivation in public sector institutions in Israel is discussed in relation to the age and job seniority of the employees. The motivation structure of public sector employees is presented from the perspective of the 12-factor motivation theory developed by Sh. Ritchi and P. Martin. The concept of labour motivation has been viewed from different perspectives, and key factors of motivation of public sector employees have been allocated. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation factors of the state service workers have been discussed. Based on the above, this empirical research was conducted among the 585 people aged 18 to 65 working in public institutions in Israel. The structure of the motivation sphere of the employees was studied from the perspective of the 12-factor motivation theory. Statistical analysis shows that there are differences in the level of motivation depending on the employee’s age and job seniority. Intrinsic motivation factors, such as structuring of work, social contacts, diversity and change, and the need for selfimprovement, growth, and development appear to be stronger among older employees. The results contribute to the development of work motivation plans for the employees and help to understand the key factors of public sector employee performance.

Demands and Resources: Weighing Interaction Effects on Occupational Burnout.

The need to identify the main determinants of occupational burnout gained new attention with the release of management of psychosocial standards. Based on the JD-R model and COR theory, the article compares demands and resources interactions and their effects on high levels of burnout. Employees in Israel ( N = 2010) reported job demands and organizational and personal resources. One year later, 1201 of them reported their burnout. The interactions effects on next-year burnout levels were analyzed using logistic regression. The enhancing interaction better predicts next-year burnout. Each additional stressor increases the risk for very high burnout (above 4) a year later (odds ratio = 1.76; 95% confidence interval: 1.55-2.00). The cumulative interaction of stressors predicts next-year burnout levels. Moreover, we used concrete comparable values of the measures that may initiate a standardization process for organizational stressors.

Blood pressure variability at midlife is associated with all-cause, coronary heart disease and stroke long term mortality.

Elevated blood pressure (BP) is associated with cardiovascular mortality. BP variability (BPV) is also associated with cardiovascular mortality. However, most studies evaluated hypertensive patients with a relatively short follow-up. We investigated in male workers the association between BPV and long-term all-cause and specific-cause mortality. Among 10 059 men, aged 40-65, tenured civil servants and municipal employees in Israel, 9398 participants who were examined in 1963, 1965 and 1968 had assessment of diabetic and coronary morbidity status and SBP levels. Participants underwent clinical and biochemical evaluations and BP measured in the recumbent position on the right arm. We conducted analysis for SD-SBP across study visits. Hazard ratios were calculated for 18 years all-cause mortality, coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke mortality associated with quintile of SD-SBP, with the lowest quintile serving as a reference. Multivariate analysis yielded a significant association between SD-SBP and all-cause, CHD and stroke mortality. Age and SBP-adjusted hazard ratios of all-cause mortality was 1.02 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.90-1.17], 1.06 (95% CI, 0.94-1.20), 1.20 (95% CI, 1.06-1.35) and 1.36 (95% CI, 1.21-1.53) (for quintile 2-5, respectively). The results of CHD and stroke mortality similarly and strongly indicated increasing age-adjusted mortality risk with increasing SD-SBP. Further adjustment for smoking, BMI, diabetes mellitus and coronary heart disease yielded similar results. In this cohort of tenured male workers, BPV taken over 5 years was clearly associated with 18-year all-cause, CHD and stroke mortality.

It’s not what you know but where you come from: Cognitive skills, job autonomy and latent discrimination of ethnic minorities in Israel

Job autonomy – employees’ freedom to schedule and organise their work independently according to their own experience and preferences – is a major factor in job satisfaction. However, it is not granted to many employees in Israel, and the authors of this article were interested in the reasons for this. Based on data from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), they investigated the association between cognitive skills and job autonomy among Israeli-born Jews, Arabs and immigrants from the former Soviet Union (FSU) living in Israel. They considered PIAAC data for cognitive skills in three key domains: literacy, numeracy and problem solving in technology-rich environments. In line with social homophily theory (which explains bonding tendencies among socially similar people), the authors’ findings show different effects of cognitive skills on job autonomy between the three groups. Whereas cognitive skills were positively correlated with job autonomy among Israeli-born Jews and partially among Arabs, these effects were insignificant among FSU immigrants. The findings suggest that in the case of FSU immigrants, a latent form of discrimination is taking place: they are not being rewarded for their credentials and skills with job autonomy. Revealing the discrimination mechanisms affecting job autonomy among ethnic minorities in Israel may help policymakers to overcome ethnic-based inequality and alienation in the labour market. It may also assist the development of new approaches that tap into skills currently being ignored and thereby increase employees’ well-being.

Uric acid variability at midlife as an independent predictor of coronary heart disease and all-cause mortality.

BackgroundSerum uric acid (SUA) has long been associated with cardiovascular disease. Variability of serum uric acid (SUA) has seldom been examined in association with long-term morbidity and mortality. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the association between SUA variability and long-term all-cause and specific-cause mortality.MethodsAmong 10,059 men, aged 40–65, tenured civil servants and municipal employees in Israel, 8822 participants who were examined in 1963, 1965 and 1968 had assessment of diabetic and coronary morbidity status and SUA levels. We conducted analysis examining whether the standard deviations (SD) of Z-scores of SUA across study visits predicted coronary heart disease (CHD) and mortality. Hazard ratios (HR) associated with the SD of SUA-Z were calculated for stroke, CHD mortality and all-cause mortality associated with quartiles of the above variability.ResultsMultivariate analysis of 18-year CHD mortality yielded a significant association with the 1963–1968 SD of SUA-Z with age adjusted HR of CHD mortality of 0.97 (95% CI, 0.8–1.19), 1.05 (95% CI, 0.87–1.28) and 1.37 (95% CI, 1.15–1.65) for quartiles 2 to 4 respectively). The results of all-cause mortality similarly and strongly indicated increasing age-adjusted mortality risk with increasing SD of SUA-Z: HR = 1.08 (95% CI, 0.97–1.21), 1.15 (1.03–1.28) and 1.37 (1.23–1.51). No association was observed between the SD of SUA-Z and stroke mortality.ConclusionIn this cohort of tenured male workers, with diverse occupations, higher variability of SUA measurement taken over 5 years was clearly predictive of 18-year CHD and all-cause mortality, above and beyond the SUA levels proper.

The changing roles of community nurses: the case of health plan nurses in Israel

BackgroundIn Israel, approximately one-third of the country’s nurses work in community settings – primarily as salaried employees in Israel’s four non-profit health plans. Many health system leaders believe that the roles of health plan nurses have changed significantly in recent years due to a mix of universal developments (such as population aging and academization of the profession) and Israel-specific changes (such as the introduction of extensive quality monitoring in primary care).ObjectivesThe main objectives of the study were to identify recent changes in the roles of health plan nurses and their current areas of activity. It also explored the experience of front-line nurses with regard to autonomy, work satisfaction, and barriers to further role development.MethodsThe study integrated interviews and surveys of nurses and other professionals conducted across 4 years. Data generated from earlier study components were used to guide questions and focus for later components.In 2013, in-depth interviews were held with 55 senior nursing and medical professionals supplemented by interviews in mid-2017 with the head nurses in the four health plans. In addition, a national survey was conducted in 2014–5 among a representative sample of 1019 community nurses who work for the health plans and who are engaged in direct patient care. Six hundred ninety-two nurses responded to the survey, yielding a response rate of 69%. The survey sample consisted of an equal number of nurses from each health plan, and the observations were weighted accordingly.FindingsSenior professionals identified general themes associated with a shift in nursing roles, including a transition from reactive to initiated work, increased specialization, and a shifting of tasks from hospitals to community settings. They identified the current main areas of activity in the health plans as being: routine care, chronic care, health promotion, quality monitoring and improvement, specialized care (such as wound care), and home care.In the survey of front-line nurses, 38% of the nurses identified “caring for chronically ill patients” as their main area of activity aside from routine care; 30% did so regarding “health promotion”, and 26% did so regarding “a specific area of specialization” e.g., diabetes, wound care or women’s health). In response to a separate question, 77% reported “great” or “very great” involvement in quality measurement programs.Four out of five front-line nurses were satisfied with their work to a great or very great extent, and approximately three out of four of them (73%) felt that they had autonomy at work to a great or very great extent. About half of the nurses take into account, to a great or very great extent, the financial concerns of the health plans that employ them.A large majority of the nurses (85%) indicated that the nature of their work had changed substantially in recent years, with an increase in autonomy noted as one of the key changes. Perceived barriers to further role development include attitudes on the part of some physicians and nurses, an insufficient number of dedicated nursing positions, and insufficiently attractive wage levels.ConclusionsThe findings, gathered over 4 years, indicate alignment between universal and Israel-specific trends in health care and the evolving roles of nurses in Israel’s health plans.The findings provide support for ongoing efforts in the health plans to give nurses more authority and responsibility in the management of chronically ill patients, a more central role in health promotion efforts, more advanced training - both inter-professional and nurse-specific, and more opportunity to focus on the roles and tasks that require nursing professionals.

An examination of evaluation users’ preferences for program- and actor-oriented theories of change

As programs and policies have grown in complexity, theory of change evaluation approaches and methods have become increasingly popular. While the academic literature often adheres to program-oriented theories of change, it is gradually being exposed to actor-oriented theories of change, which aim to enhance the flexibility of evaluations in order to adapt to growing complexity. Aside from the methodological considerations of when to use which approach, it is generally accepted that to increase their influence, evaluation approaches and methods should be suited both to the evaluated program and the preferences of intended users. But do we really know what approaches intended users prefer? Using a simulation-based survey and interviews with 148 public-sector employees in Israel, this article aims to provide an initial answer to this question. The results suggest that there is room to reconsider current perceptions of what intended users think. The findings have implications for the types of theories of change evaluators can suggest to intended users, with the ultimate goal of increasing the influence of evaluations.

The effect of change in supervisor support and job control on change in vigor: Differential relationships for immigrant and native employees in Israel

SummaryBuilding on the premises of the conservation of resources theory, the aim of this study was to investigate long‐term effects of job resources on vigor among native and immigrant employees in Israel. More specifically, we investigated the effects of baseline and change in job control and supervisor support on change in vigor levels, as well as the degree to which these effects differ among educated native and immigrant employees in Israel. We surveyed 235 white‐collar Eastern European and Russian immigrants and 235 white‐collar native Israelis matched on occupational and demographic characteristics at two points of measurement with a 30‐month time lag. Latent change score modeling revealed that among both immigrants and natives, change in job control was related to change in vigor. Multiple group analyses further revealed that among immigrant employees only, baseline levels of supervisor support were associated with change in vigor. In conclusion, these findings suggest that the utilization of resources as a means of acquiring new resources may be influenced by immigrant background. Managerial implications are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Behavioral Ambidexterity: The Impact of Incentive Schemes on Productivity, Motivation, and Performance of Employees in Commercial Banks

Human resource management systems may serve as an antecedent that enables firms to develop a context for ambidexterity—an ability to pursue contradictory processes (exploitation versus exploration) within the same firm. The aim of this article is to examine the impact of motivation‐enhancing HR practices on the productivity, motivation, and performance of commercial bank employees to promote and attain contextual ambidexterity within the organization. The theoretical model presented in this article shows how ex‐ante incentives (incentives based on past performance) and ex‐post incentives (incentives based on future performance) affect productivity, motivation, and performance of employees. The results are tested empirically by analyzing real quarterly data of commercial bank employees in Israel. The main results show that workers with relatively high abilities might take advantage of both ex‐ante and ex‐post incentives. In contrast, workers with relatively low ability are unable to take advantage of both incentive schemes. Our findings indicate that motivation‐enhancing HR practices such as financial incentives significantly influence the productivity and performance of employees. Our study contributes to the ambidexterity literature by examining how motivation‐enhancing human resource (HR) practices such as incentive schemes make employees feel the sense of stretch that is essential in building an ambidextrous organization. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A global evaluation of organizational fairness and its relationship to psychological contracts

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to examine whether the concepts of organizational politics, procedural justice, and psychological contract breach can serve as indicators of a global evaluation of the (un)fairness of the organization, and that this general fairness evaluation predicts attitudes and behaviors. Design/methodology/approach – The paper compares the model to one in which the concepts are considered in terms of both their unique effects and the interrelationships among them. In addition, the study examines how psychological contract types are related to each model. A survey of 311 bank employees in Israel was conducted. Findings – The findings show that neither model is strongly superior to the other. This suggests that the three exchange variables can be conceptualized, not only in terms of their unique effects and interrelationships, but also as aspects of one global concept of fairness. Originality/value – This study suggests that the concepts of organizational politics, procedural justice...

Mandated justice: The potential promise and possible pitfalls of mandating procedural justice in the workplace

AbstractThis study addresses the question of whether and how legal authorities ought to intervene in work organizations in order to most effectively regulate the behavior of employees. This question is examined empirically, by exploring whether the association between the level of fairness employees experience in procedures regarding pay and benefits, and their adherence to workplace rules, differs depending upon whether those procedures are enacted by companies voluntarily or mandated by law. This question was addressed using both a survey of a representative sample of employees in Israel, as well as their reactions to an experimental vignette. The results generally suggest that evaluations of the procedural justice of performance appraisal hearings more strongly influenced judgments of overall workplace fairness, perceptions of management legitimacy, and employee rule‐adherence behavior when employees believed fairer workplace procedures were required by law.

Coping with work-family conflict: The reciprocal and additive contributions of personal coping and organizational family-friendly support

The aim of this study was to test three alternative models – additive, interactive, and reciprocal – of the relationship between personal coping strategies and formal organizational family-friendly supports in mitigating work-family conflict (WFC). Altogether 474 employees in Israel having a partner and children and representing diverse professions and organizations were surveyed. The additive model, that is, personal coping and organizational supports together, were associated with decreased WFC, received support. However, the reciprocal model was also supported, as WFC decreased when individuals perceived the investments between their efforts in personal coping strategies and the organization's efforts in organizational supports as equal. The interactive model, namely personal coping and organizational supports compensate each other in decreasing conflict, received marginal support. Nevertheless, in each model personal coping strategies proved a better approach to mitigating WFC than formal family-friendly supports. The findings suggest that the role of organizational support is important in decreasing WFC when employees lack the personal coping strategies required or when they perceive the organization's efforts to be unfair in relation to their own coping efforts.

Diversity in an Israeli intersectional analysis: The salience of employment arrangements and inter-personal relationships

Synopsis This paper compares the work experiences of cleaning employees in Israel from three ethno-national categories – immigrants from the FSU, women from two Arab towns, and Mizrahi women in the southern periphery – as a basis for a systematic analysis of local gender/class/ethno-national intersectionality. The findings underscore the structural processes that expose women of ethnic minorities to the pressures of breadwinning motherhood, and revealed their dependence on cleaning and its diverse employment arrangements. Aside from this inter-ethnic commonality, the fragmentation of employment arrangements points to sources of diversity in women's experiences. Opportunities for inter-personal encounters shaped by specific employment arrangements were found to generate distinct experiences. These opportunities equip women with knowledge enabling them to cope in the community, family and at work. The significance of the emerging diversity for intersectional analysis is discussed.

What Workers Really Want: Voice, Unions and Personal Contracts

One of the leading theories for why employees join unions, represented in Freeman and Rogers’ influential book, What Workers Want, is that employees' main concern is to be given a greater voice in the workplace and that unions best serve this function. This line of literature, while doing much to explore the functioning of unions, has overshadowed the voice associated with personal contracts in employees' everyday life. The current study analyses Israeli employees' preferences for voice through a comparison of their perception of collective agreements and unions in comparison to other available legal instruments and institutions, with special emphasis on personal contracts with their employers. The Israeli workforce is an especially interesting case study, due to the major changes undergone in Israel in the nature of employment relations. The data for this study was collected from a representative sample of 600 employees in Israel, using a combination of survey questions about their own work experience and scenario-based questions. Findings revealed an expected effect where stronger employees were more likely to trust personal contract rather than their unions for gaining a voice. Whereas workers with low levels of voice showed a stronger desire to join unions and manage their employment rights through collective agreements. In contrast to the current view in the literature on collective voice, our findings suggest, however, that gaining more of a voice did not predict the desire to stay unionized. Furthermore, the comparison between unionized and non-unionized employees, suggests that the latter group felt they had more influence on their employment conditions and were generally more satisfied with it. Unionized employees were far less involved and aware of their employment conditions and status. Furthermore, only among employees with personal contracts, was there a relationship between their influence, and their satisfaction from the legal instrument. Nonetheless, unionized employees were more likely to resist a change in the legal instrument that regulates their behavior. Hence, while a personal contract has the upper hand in providing a voice and a sense of control to employees; collective agreements are still desired, especially among weaker employees. The theoretical focus on voice as experienced on the individual level, leads to policy discussion about the choice of the optimal legal instrument for employees.

Workplace Vaccination and Other Factors Impacting Influenza Vaccination Decision among Employees in Israel

The study examined the factors affecting the decision to be vaccinated against influenza among employees in Israel. The research, conducted in 2007/2008, included 616 employees aged 18−65 at various workplaces in Israel, among them companies that offered their employees influenza vaccination. The research questionnaire included socio-demographic characteristics, and the Health Belief Model principles. The results show that the significant factors affecting vaccination compliance include a vaccination program at workplaces, vaccinations in the past, higher levels of vaccine’s perceived benefits, and lower levels of barriers to getting the vaccine. We conclude that vaccine compliance is larger at companies with workplace vaccination programs providing easier accessibility to vaccination.

A value based perspective on commitment in the workplace: An examination of Schwartz's basic human values theory among bank employees in Israel

Abstract There has been a growing trend recently to examine individual-level values in order to better understand attitudes and behaviors of employees in the workplace. This paper continues this trend by examining the relationship between individual-level values, using Schwartz's basic human values theory, and six workplace commitment forms (organizational, occupational, group, work, job, union). It also examines whether individual values relate to commitment forms when controlling for demographic variables and justice perceptions. The sample includes 424 employees of one of the major banks in Israel. The findings show strong relationships between age and justice and commitment forms. However, they also show that individual values relate to commitment forms above and beyond the effect of the demographic and justice variables. In particular, the results show consistent positive relationships between benevolence and achievement, on the one hand, and most of the commitment forms on the other. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for future research on the relationships between individual values and commitment in the workplace.

Determinants of Employee Punctuality

Although researchers have studied employee lateness empirically (e.g., S. Adler & J. Golan, 1981; C. W. Clegg, 1983), few have attempted to describe the punctual employee. In the present study, results of a discriminant analysis on employees in Israel indicated that a personality characteristic, time urgency, a subcomponent of Type A behavioral pattern, distinguished between punctual and late employees. Organizational commitment and age of employee's youngest child also distinguished between the groups.

Cost-benefit analysis of active vaccination campaigns against hepatitis A among daycare centre personnel in Israel.

To evaluate, in economic terms, active vaccination campaigns against hepatitis A in comparison with the use of nonspecific immune globulin for the prevention of the disease among daycare centre employees in Israel. Hypothetical analysis of the costs and benefits related to vaccination campaigns of workers currently employed in daycare centres in Israel. A cost-benefit analysis was performed, comparing mass and selective active vaccination strategies for the daycare centre working force. Direct and indirect costs of diagnosis, treatment and immunisation as well as productivity loss were considered. A Markov-based model was developed using data from previous epidemiological studies and literature. The benefit-to-cost ratios of selective and mass active vaccination strategies were 1.50 [net present value (NPV) $US606 396] and 0.04 (NPV-$US2.36 million), respectively (2000 values). Under these study assumptions, the practice of administering hepatitis A active vaccine to serologically proven non-immune daycare centre workers has a cost-benefit justification, and should be widely considered in countries with a similar hepatitis A epidemiology to that in this study.

Organizational Politics, Job Attitudes, and Work Outcomes: Exploration and Implications for the Public Sector

The study aimed to promote understanding of employees' reactions to organizational politics. The relationship between perception of organizational politics, job attitudes, and several other work outcomes was examined among 303 public sector employees in Israel. Perception of organizational politics was found to have had a negative relationship with job attitudes (e.g., job satisfaction and organizational commitment), a positive relationship with intention to leave the organization (exit), and a stronger positive relationship with negligent behavior (neglect). It is suggested that public personnel will tend to react to workplace politics with negligent behavior rather than by leaving. A weak negative relationship was found between perception of organizational politics and employees' performance as reported by supervisors. Perception of organizational politics also made a unique contribution to explaining variance among the work outcomes, beyond the variance explained by job attitudes and personal variables. Several implications and recommendations for further inquiry into perception of politics in organizations, particularly in the public sector, are noted.

Abstracts of literature

Abstracts of literature