Workplace Quality Research Articles

The Neglected World of the Workplace Trainer

The aim of this small-scale research is to explore the hidden world of the workplace trainer. Four trainers from a training institute in Qatar were interviewed and asked about their opinions of the employee as a learner, the trainer’s work, and the role of quality compliance in the training process. After transcribing and analysing the semi- structured interviews, several themes concerning the employee as a learner emerged such as the employees’ motivation and the effects of the workplace environment on learning. The findings also showed the trainers’ need for an adequate professional development plan and a reconsideration of their power inside the classroom. Regarding the quality compliance, there were various insights and suggestions for improvement. The results of this study are important to any workplace trainers, human development, and quality compliance employees or anyone interested in knowing more about the world of adult learning.

Experiences of Staff Nurses during Clinical Learning

Professional Issues Paper Presentation Objective To understand the unstructured experiences of staff nurses in an obstetric unit with undergraduate nursing students present. Design Naturalistic inquiry. Setting Family birth center in Pacific Northwest. Sample Convenience sample, 12 English speaking, baccalaureate-prepared registered nurses (RNs) who worked in unstructured manner with nursing students. Methods Semistructured interviews were conducted and recorded. Participants shared their experiences of working with students. Data were analyzed using an interpretive continuous approach according to Lincoln and Guba's elucidation of Glaser and Strauss's constant-comparative method, and data were stored, organized, and coded. Data collection and analysis ceased when categories were saturated and no new information surfaced. Demographic data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. An experienced qualitative researcher provided oversight to ensure accuracy. Credibility, transferability, dependability, confirmability were used to ensure trustworthiness. Results Five themes emerged as follows: giving and receiving : working with students provided nurses opportunities to give back to their profession—nurses learned from students; advancing professionally and personally : many nurses took advantage of workplace incentives to gain additional compensation and opportunities; balancing act : nurses balanced their typical workloads with student learning needs and provision of safe, quality care—students slowed nurses down; getting to know and working with you : nurses worked to know student personally and tailored the learning experience—nurses desired students be prepared; past and present : clinical experiences exert long lasting impressions. Conclusion/Implications for Nursing Practice Clinical learning is integral to nursing education and preparation for professional practice. Increased enrollments in baccalaureate nursing programs require more staff nurses to supervise students in the workplace. Researchers have found students’ learning, impressions of nursing, and perceptions of clinical learning are greatly influenced by nurses in the workplace, and working with students is a benefit for many nurses. Workplace learning may increase when students are prepared prior to entering clinical settings. Nurses working with students should be judiciously selected. Future research should be aimed at discovering tangible rewards and benefits that motivate nurses to work in an unstructured manner with students and determine how students in the workplace influence patient safety and quality of care.

Which Sustainability Practices Impact Firm’s Value? Evidence From Asia

There has been significant debate in the sustainability literature on the impact of sustainability practices on a firm’s market value. Little consensus exists, however, on which specific practices impact a firm’s market value and the direction of their impact. In this paper, using independent assessment data on 42 mainland Chinese and Hong Kong firms listed on the Hong Kong Hang Seng Stock Exchange, we empirically evaluate the impact of six sustainability practices of these firms, derived from some of the popular sustainability indices, on their adjusted stock market value over a three year time period. Our analysis of the data through linear mixed modeling method found two out of the six practices, namely, community investment, and to a lesser extent, workplace quality, as the only significant predictors of firm’s market value. Furthermore, their impact on firm value displayed an inverted U-shaped temporal relationship in that it took a few years for their impact to gain significance and it faded away in the latter years. Our findings suggest that “soft” social and relational practices may be more important than the “hard” technical and instrumental factors. Furthermore, since none of these sustainability practices were negatively related to firm value, we conclude that there is no empirical evidence to support that sustainability practices erode firm value. Overall, our findings provide clearer guidance to firms on the type of sustainability practices to focus on, and advance our knowledge about the specific sustainability practices that positively contribute to firm value.

Energy performance certification as a signal of workplace quality

Energy performance labelling and certification have been introduced widely to address market failures affecting the uptake of energy efficient technologies, by providing a signal to support decision making during contracting processes. The UK has recently introduced the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) as a signal of building energy performance. The aims of this article are: to evaluate how valid EPC’s are signals of occupier satisfaction with office facilities; and to understand whether occupant attitudes towards environmental issues have affected commercial office rental values. This was achieved by surveying occupant satisfaction with their workplaces holistically using a novel multi-item rating scale which gathered 204 responses. Responses to this satisfaction scale were matched with the corresponding EPC and rental value of occupier’s workplaces. The satisfaction scale was found to be both a reliable and valid measure. The analysis found that EPC asset rating correlates significantly with occupant satisfaction with all facility attributes. Therefore, EPC ratings may be considered valid signals of overall facility satisfaction within the survey sample. Rental value was found to correlate significantly only with facility aesthetics. No evidence suggests rental value has been affected by occupants' perceptions towards the environmental impact of facilities.

Workplace quality and labour turnover in the electronics industry of the Pearl River Delta, China

Abstract Export-oriented manufacturing firms in developing countries need to be highly flexible in order to respond to demand changes in volatile global markets. By using a modified version of Atkinson’s flexible firm concept as a framework, it is the aim of this paper (i) to describe the impact of workplace quality on labour turnover and (ii) to derive implications of this relationship for upgrading processes. Empirical data are combined from two surveys of migrant workers and electronics firms in the Pearl River Delta, China.

Can interprofessional collaboration provide health human resources solutions? A knowledge synthesis

Many studies examine the impact of interprofessional (IP) interventions on various health practice and education outcomes. One significant gap is the lack of research on the effects of IP interventions on health human resource (HHR) outcomes. This project synthesized the literature on the impact of IP interventions at the pre- and post-licensure levels on quality workplace, staff satisfaction, recruitment, retention, turnover, choice of employment and cost effectiveness. Forty-one peer-reviewed articles and five IECPCP project reports were included in the review. We found that IP interventions at the post-licensure level improved provider satisfaction and workplace quality. Including IP learning opportunities into practice education in rural communities or in less popular healthcare specialties attracted a higher number of students and therefore may increase employment rates. This area requires more high quality studies to firmly establish the effectiveness of IP interventions in recruiting and retaining future healthcare professionals. There is strong evidence that IP interventions at the post-licensure level reduced patient care costs. The knowledge synthesis has enhanced our understanding of the relationships between IP interventions, IP collaboration and HHR outcomes. Gaps remain in the knowledge of staff retention and determination of staffing costs associated with IP interventions vis-à-vis patient care costs. None of the studies reported long-term data on graduate employment choice, which is essential to fully establish the effectiveness of IP interventions as a HHR recruitment strategy.

Workplace Dispute Resolution and Quality of Work Life: The Worker Co-Operative Alternative

Workplace Dispute Resolution and Quality of Work Life: The Worker Co-Operative Alternative

Impacts on Ambient Air Quality Due to Flaring Activities in One of Oman's Oilfields

ABSTRACT This work was conducted to assess the impacts on workplace and ambient air quality due to release of sulfur dioxide (SO2) into the atmosphere at Al-Noor production station, located in southern desert of Sultanate of Oman. The SO2 is released because of oxidation of H2S to SO2 on flaring of H2S rich off gas at the Al-Noor. In the first phase of the study, CALPUFF modeling system was used to predict the ground level concentrations of SO2 emissions from the flare stacks. The evaluation of the modeling system was carried out by comparing the predicted results with that of the measured. In the second stage of the study, the estimated results were compared with the air quality standards/guidelines set by Omani regulatory authorities as well as by World Health Organization (WHO). It was concluded on the basis of current study that the sensitive individuals in the workplace of the Al-Noor could experience adverse health effects due to short-term exposure of SO2.

The town where 5S applies (the effectiveness of the 5S workplace organization and quality management technique in the public services sector)

The town where 5S applies (the effectiveness of the 5S workplace organization and quality management technique in the public services sector)

Indices of ergonomic-psycholsociological workplace quality in the greenhouses of Almería (Spain): Crops of cucumbers, peppers, aubergines and melons

This work uses the Labour Economics and Sociology Laboratory of France (LEST) method to evaluate the ergonomic-psycholsociological quality of work in horticultural greenhouse exploitations in Almería (Spain) with the aim of improving workers’ occupational health. Data on the factors affecting the physical environment, the physical workload, mental workload, psychosocial aspects and the working hours of labourers were collected in 110 greenhouses, 35 of the Almeria parral- plano type and 75 of the raspa y amagado type. The crops raised in these greenhouses were cucumbers (24 greenhouses), peppers (25), aubergines (28), and melons (38). These greenhouses, typical of southeastern Spain, were found not to guarantee workers a comfortable working environment. The type of greenhouse and the crop raised within directly affected the ergonomic-psychosocial conditions of the workers. Suggestions are offered that might improve these conditions.

Relationship of Workplace Factors and Job Involvement of Healthcare Employees with Quality of Patient Care in Teaching and Non-teaching Hospitals

The present study examined the effects of certain hospital workplace factors on job involvement among healthcare employees at the paramedical levels and quality of patient care in public hospitals in North India. The sample consisted of paramedical healthcare employees (N = 200), from a medical college affiliated teaching hospital and public hospitals (non-teaching) run by the railway services. Data were analyzed statistically to examine the hypothesized differences between the two types of hospitals. Results showed that employee perceptions of the workplace factors, namely, participation in decision making, innovative practices, perceived organizational support and role efficacy were significantly different in the teaching and non-teaching hospitals. Stepwise regression analysis of the data revealed that the factor ‘innovative practices’ was a positive predictor of job involvement in the non-teaching hospitals but a negative predictor of in job involvement in the teaching hospital. Job involvement significantly mediated the relationship between the perception of workplace factors and quality of patient care only in the non-teaching hospitals. The present study has important implications for initiating changes in the hospital system, particularly in public hospitals, where no systematic study has yet been conducted to determine the effects of workplace factors on job involvement of healthcare professionals and the quality of patient care in India.

Workers’ direct participation at the workplace and job quality in Europe

In this paper we focus on workplace practices aimed at increasing workers’ direct voice, and their connection to job quality. After contextualizing historically the various reasons for increasing different types of workers’ participation and exploring the muddled role of direct participation in European policy, it reflects on possible indicators for workplace worker involvement (direct and through representatives) and offers a brief review regarding research on the impact of workers’ direct participation on job quality in Europe, identifying essentially positive but also some negative outcomes. The interaction of the workers’ direct voice with representative participation at the workplace in terms of substitution or complementarity and the mediating role of productive and industrial relations contexts are also reflected upon.

The social psychology of status leveling in organizational contexts

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe the programs of status leveling – such as through the elimination of executive washrooms, reserved parking, and so forth – are a taken‐for‐granted feature of many workplace involvement and quality improvement programs, yet no prior research has investigated the presumed effects.Design/methodology/approachThis conceptual paper enumerates devices commonly used to level status in organizations, and presents a number of propositions intended to capture the major effects. The paper draws on extant literatures from social psychology, sociology, and organizational theory to account for processes and effects of leveling.FindingsLeveling devices lead to several proximate outcomes: increased cross‐status interaction and contact, literal blurring of status, role flexibility, and low power distance perceptions. These in turn mediate the relation between leveling and several broader organizational outcomes, including distributive justice based upon equality, community, communication, and empowerment. Factors moderating the effects of leveling are explored.Research limitations/implicationsWhile the salutary effects of leveling tend to be taken for granted, it is possible to specify how leveling generates specific behavioral, attitudinal, and performance related outcomes. The model should be empirically tested.Practical implicationsThe findings provide managers with a fine‐grained understanding of this important set of organizational practices.Originality/valueNo prior scholarship has focused on this most important topic.

Neonatal intensive care nursery staff perceive enhanced workplace quality with the single-family room design

To compare perceived workplace quality in an open-bay neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and a single-family room (SFR) NICU. Prospective non-randomized, non-controlled cohort study. Staff workplace quality perceptions assessed included the following: the quality of being a Sanford Health System employee (NS-not significant), the quality of the NICU physical work environment, the quality of NICU patient care, the job quality in the NICU, the quality of health and safety in the NICU (NS), the quality of safety and security in the NICU, the quality of interaction with other members of the NICU health-care team (NS; in subanalysis nurse scores significantly declined), the quality of interaction with NICU technology and the off-job quality of life (NS). Scores for each category and the total scores were statistically greater in the SFR, except as noted (NS). Staff perceptions of workplace quality were significantly greater in the SFR than the open-bay NICU.

Workers’ Involvement at the Workplace and Job Quality in Europe

The paper focuses on workplace practices aimed at increasing workers’ direct voice, a job quality dimension in the European Employment Strategy for which there are no agreed indicators. It offers an analysis of the theories, debate and research on the impact of workers’ direct participation on jobs’ quality and quantity, including its interaction and tensions with representative participation. It also reviews the main databases available and offers a meta-analysis on the extension of direct participation in a range of European countries. Finally, it reflects on issues for future research.

Kaoru Ishikawa: from fishbones to world peace

> In management, the first concern of the company is the happiness of the people connected with it. If people do not feel happy and cannot be made happy, that...

Editorial: Organising care delivery: facilitator or impediment to supportive working relationships in nursing

Editorial: Organising care delivery: facilitator or impediment to supportive working relationships in nursing

Competencies and employer engagement

Using the UK experience as a template, this paper explores the concept of competencies as a viable bridge to employer engagement. In this context, the definition of competency coalesces into three primary interpretations (input, output and ‘behaviour’), leading to three applications: work related skill sets, standards and professionalism. These in turn, inform intersecting relationships — the link between employer skills needs and education (work-based learning), educational and workplace competency, and quality (accreditation of employer based training, and credit accumulation and transfer systems) and vocational competency (fit for practice, and fit for purpose). For each element, relevant models and indicative practice is presented. The paper concludes by offsetting competencies with employer engagement, and offers approaches (vignettes) to actively advance this critical agenda.

The relationship between quality management and health – exploring the underlying dimensions

The first purpose of this study was to verify the relationship between workplace health and quality management, particularly the values ‘leadership commitment’ and ‘participation of everybody’ whos ...

Improving Quality of Care Through Systems Research: A Guide for Managers and Practitioners

Nursing systems research is a dynamic blend of analyzing workplace conditions, organizational culture, and quality outcomes. Concepts such as leadership, front-line worker decision making, empowerment, and communication are now more effectively measured, setting the stage for more detailed organizational analysis in nursing homes. The advent of large data sets such as the Minimum Data Set has advanced the abilities of managers, practitioners, and clinicians to better evaluate quality outcomes for residents. Combining research on organizational characteristics with the quality outcomes measured in large data sets, provides exciting new ways to understand factors that drive resident health outcomes. Managers working in long-term care must often take a systems approach to problem solving. Nursing systems research can help inform leaders about aspects of the organization that most affect quality. Increased knowledge about systems issues will assist administrators, directors of nursing, and other leaders in nursing homes with their tactical problem solving on a day-to-day basis.