EFFECTS OF PUBLIC SERVICE WELFARE POLICY ON JOB SATISFACTION OF TEACHERS IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study examines the effects of public service welfare policy (independent variable) on job satisfaction (dependent variable) of secondary school teachers in Lagos State. With the growing unemployment rate, youth restlessness, and youth perception of education as scam in Nigeria, there is a need to examine how the teachers can be motivated to improve their productivity and quality of service delivery, to renew the confidence of the youths in future of the country. The study obtained primary data through structured questionnaire, administered on randomly selected 360 respondents from five of the 20 local governments of Lagos State, to determine the nature of welfare packages,examine how satisfying they are, and investigates the impacts of the packages on teachers' job satisfaction. The statistical instruments for data analysis include chi-square, percentiles, and bar chart. The findings indicate that teachers benefitted from the packages, and that the packages impact positively on the teachers' job satisfaction. The findings further show that the packages are not significantly satisfying, but ironically the teachers are not willing to quit their job. The paper concludes that the individual preferences, present rate of unemployment, differential level of utility obtained from each of the packages by each employee, and hope of future promotion, which characterizes the hierarchical structure of public service, might be the motivating factors and significant positive impacts on job satisfaction variables. The paper recommends proper feedback appraisal to guide policy decision, proper planning, transparent process and holistic approach for effective policy implementation.