IRJC

International Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research

Vol.1 Issue 10, October 2012, ISSN 2277 3622


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QUALITY OF WORK LIFE-AN OVERVIEW

DR.A.JAYAKUMAR*; K.KALAISELVI**

*Associate Professor,
Department of Commerce,
Peiryar University, Salem.
**Research Scholar,
Department of Commerce,
Periyar University,
Salem.

ABSTRACT

Quality of work life Movement initially a loosely organized network of a few dozen academics
in the early 1970s, the QWL Movement had grown by the 1980s into an international grouping
of trade union officials, personal managers and social scientist generally. QWL will have direct
and indirect relationship with the economic and social well-being of large portion of population
which lies beyond the domain of Industry. Improved QWL naturally helps to improve the family
life of the employees and world also improves the performance of the Industry/ enterprises. This
article reviews the meaning of QWL, various definition of QWL and determinant of QWL based
on the reviews. Improving the Quality of Work Life, barriers and Issues of QWL described.
However, there is positive and significant relationship between QWL and employees job
satisfaction. QWL practice involves acquiring, training developing, motivating and appraising
for the best performance of the employees as per Organizational objectives. QWL provides for
the balanced relationship among work, non-work and family aspects of life. We therefore, have
undertaken this study influence of workers QWL.

KEYWORDS: QWL, Quality of Work Life, Employees, Organizations, Quality Circles.
__________________________________________________________________________

INTRODUCTION
The Quality of Work Life (QWL) has assumed increasingly interest and importance in all the
countries of the World. It is very significant in the context of commitment to work, motivation
and job performance. It is also means to facilitate the gratification of human needs and goal
achievement. Work life naturally means the life of workers, physical and intellectual, in their
work environment in office or factory or field-working. What is expected of the worker? What
are the conditions of the work place? What is the compensation that the worker gets? What are
the incentives offered to him? How about his contentment with the work environment and the
compensation? These are the questions to be tackled by the Researcher in any study of work life.
Quality of work Life is referred to as humanizing the working life and emphasizing the human
factor. It mostly refers to favorableness or unfavourableness of a job environment for the people
involved in it. The basic objective is to develop jobs that are excellent for people as well as for
production. So we can see the basic questions of Quality Work Life.
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International Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research
Vol.1 Issue 10, October 2012, ISSN 2277 3622


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What is Quality? Quality is the ability of a product or service to consistently meet or
exceed customer expectations.
What is work? Work can be defined as the application of discretion within limits in order
to produce a result.
What is work life? Work life does not merely means the facilities provided to the
employees during office hours. It comprises of all the collusive feelings, which reside in the
mind of the employee while he works in the organization, he is in the office or away from it.
MEANING OF QWL
Quality of work Life is a Persons life. It covers a persons feelings about every
dimension of work including economic rewards and benefits, security, working condition,
Organizational and interpersonal relations and its intrinsic meaning in persons life. Therefore
we can simply say Q.W.L. is a concern not only to improve life at work, but also life outside
work.
VARIOUS DEFINITIONS OF QUALITY OF WORK LIFE
First definition 1969-1972 Quality of Work Life = Variable
Second definition 1969-1975 Quality of Work Life = Approach
Third definition 1972- 1975 Quality of Work Life = Methods
Fourth definition 1975-1980 Quality of Work Life = Movements
Fifth definition 1979-1982 Quality of Work Life = Everything
Sixth definition Quality of Work Life = Everything
The term Quality of Work Life has different connotation to different
persons. And also Robbins (1989) defines QWL as a process by which an Organization
responds to employee needs by developing mechanisms to allow them to share fully in making
the decisions that design their lives at work.
London conducted Objectives of Q.W.L.
To improve the standard of living of the employees.
To increase the productivity
To create a positive attitude in the minds of the employees.
To increase the effectiveness of the organization (profitability, goal accomplishment
etc.,)
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International Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research
Vol.1 Issue 10, October 2012, ISSN 2277 3622


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ORIGION OF THE CONCEPT
After Industrial Revolution, the importance of human factor reduced because of the vast
mechanization. Various problems like job dissatisfaction, boredom, absenteeism, lack of
commitment etc came up.
Most management theories give emphasis on production, manipulating the skills of
employees.
Tavy stock Institute of Human Relations me research on workers problems in Industrial
world and they produced a study approach called Socio-technical system in which they
gave great importance to job design to satisfy human needs adequately and the need for
Q.W.L. in an organization was emphasized.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Cohen and Rosenthal (1980) describes QWL as an intentionally designed effort to bring
out increased labour management, and co-operation to jointly solve the problem of improving
organizational performance and employees satisfaction.
According to Walton, (2005). He proposed eight major conceptual categories relating to
QWL as (1) adequate and fair compensation, (2) safe and healthy working conditions, (3)
immediately opportunity for continued growth and security, (4) Opportunity to use and develop
human capacities, (5) Social integration in the work organization, (6), Constitutionalism in the
work organization, (7), Work and total life space and (8), Social relevance of work life. Several
published works have addressed the constructs that make up the QWL domain and key elements
of QWL programs.
Cherg.S says in a High Quality of work life there should be a positive impact on personal
life, an opportunity to be involved in decision as well as acceptable level of physical comfort.
The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment excellence, regardless
of their chosen field of endeavor. - Vincent Lombardi
Hack man and Oldham (1976) drew attention to what they described as psychological
growth needs as relevant to the consideration of Quality of working life. Several such needs were
identified: Skill variety, Task Identity, Task significance, Autonomy and Feedback. They
suggested that such needs have to be addressed if employees are to experience high quality of
working life.
GENERAL CONCEPT OF Q.W.L.
The concept was being given potential importance right from early 1950s. It is interpreted
and viewed in different ways.
Management and supervisory style
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Freedom and autonomy to make decision on the job
Satisfactory Physical surroundings
Job safety
Meaningful tasks.
HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENTS ROLE
The role of human resource department in QWL efforts varies widely. In some
organizations, top management appoints an executive to ensure that QWL and productivity efforts
occur throughout the organization. In most cases, these executives have a small staff and must
rely on the human resource department for help with employee training, communications,
attitude survey feedback, and similar assistance. In other organizations, the department is
responsible for initiating and directing the firms QWL and productivity efforts. Perhaps the
most crucial role of the department is winning the support of key managers. Management
support particularly top management support appears to be an almost universal prerequisite for
successful QWL programs. By substantiating employee satisfaction and bottom-line benefits,
which range from lower absenteeism and turnover to higher productivity and fewer accidents, the
department can help convince doubting managers. The policies and practices of the department
also influence motivation and satisfaction indirectly. Rigorous enforced safety and health
programs, for example, can give employees and supervisors a greater sense of safety from
accidents and industrial health hazards. The motivation and satisfaction of employees act as
feedback on the organizations QWL and on the departments day-to-day activities.
QWL IN INDIA
The quality of work Life (QWL) Apart from ensuring fair pay, the fair treatment of
employees and safe working conditions, many companies respond to specific employee needs. In
India, some of the companies that emphasize the quality of work life are Hewlett-Packard, Smith
Kline Beecham, American Express, Colgate Palmolive, Gillette, Dr.Reddys Laboratories,
Reliance and Maruti Udyog Limited.HP allows flexible working arrangements for its employees
and follows certain innovative practices such as allowing employees to avail leave for special
occasions (marriage, exam preparation, adoption of a child, bereavement in the family, and
paternity). QWL in India has emerged as a movement. Following are the factors that led to the
QWL movement in our country:
1. Changing profile of the Indian worker from and illiterate, rural, low caste individual to
educated, urban and essentially belonging to upper strata of caste structure has made
him/her more concern for own hopes and aspirations.
2. That worker is not just like other factors of production such as, machinery, land, and
capital but a human being with feelings and emotions, has made organizations behave
with workers accordingly. The establishment of a separate Ministry of Human Resource
Development by the Government of India is a testimony to such realization.
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3. In India, around 10 per cent of workers in organized sector are unionized. The past record
relation to labour unions lends enough evidence that the unionized work force has been
much vocal for demands of one type or other.
4. That human behavior is highly unpredictable and complex underlines the need for the
study of organizational behavior. QWL is one of the newer concepts experimenting how
to make effective utilization of human resources.
QWL in India seems in practice in a variety of operational systems like workers
participation, job enrichment, quality circles, etc. Here, an attempt has been made to give an
overview of these in terms of their broad coverage and experiences of Indian organization with
them.
WHY NEED QUALITY OF WORK LIFE?
In current scenario every organization wants more output in comparison of less input, it
can be possible when working employee find its working place comfortable as per the job
requirement. So its very important for an organization to make a Quality relationship between its
employees and working environment. Now-a-days, there is no balance between the family and
work life due to job pressure and conflicting interests and over-socialization that lead to too
much of interest about the co-workers for satisfaction of their ego, creating problems in the
minds of neighbors.
The work-norms impose on workers too much of burden and control by their bosses. And
the rules are for workers or employees. They have to follow, and the employer has right to lay-
off the worker due to marketing and technological factors.
The Indian workers and their Unions are now on the defensive. They are now more
interested in the question of how to retain their jobs than in the question of how to improve their
Quality of Life in the work place.
It is therefore not difficult to understand why the question of improving Quality of Work
Life has lost its importance in our country. The Quality of Work Life movement which draws
attention to workers need for meaningful and satisfying work and for participation in decisions
that affect their work situation. And work is a major formation experience which can either
promote or limit a mans growth in ways which affect the whole man and which therefore shape
his life outside the job as well as within it.
MEASURING QUALITY OF WORK LIFE
The Richard Walton, an American Professor, played a major role in developing the concept
of Quality of Work Life. The eight factors he proposed to measure Quality of Work Life has
made the task easy worldwide.
1. Adequate and Fair compensation
2. Safe and healthy working conditions
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3. Opportunity to develop human capacities
4. Opportunity for career growth
5. Social integration in the workforce
6. Constitutionalism
7. Work and Quality of Life
8. Social relevance
MEASURES TO IMPROVE QWL
A) QWL THROUGH EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT (EI): One of the most common methods used
to create QWL is employee involvement. Employee involvement (EI) consists of a variety of
systematic methods that empower employees to participate in the decisions that affect them and
their relationship with the organization. Through (EI), employees feel a sense of responsibility,
even ownership of decisions in which they participate.
To be successful, however, EI must be more than just a systematic approach; it must become
part of the organizations culture by being part of managements philosophy. Some companies
have had this philosophy ingrained in their corporate structure for decades; Hewlett-Packard,
IBM, General Motors, Ford, etc.
B) QUALITY CIRCLES: Quality circles are small groups of employees who meet
regularly with their common leader to identify and solve work-related problems. They are a
highly specific form of team building, which are common in Japan and gained popularity in
North America in the late1970s and early 1980s. By the 1980s most medium- and large-sized
Japanese firms had quality control circles for hourly employees. This effort began as a quality
improvement program but has since become a routine procedure for many Japanese managers and
cornerstone of QWL efforts in many Japanese firms. Several characteristics make this approach unique.
First, membership in the circle involuntary for both the leader (usually the supervisor) and
the members (usually hourly workers). Secondly, the creation of quality circles is usually preceded by in-house
training. For supervisors these sessions typically last for two or three days. Most of the time is
devoted. to discussions of small-group dynamics, leadership skills, and indoctrination in the
QWL and quality circle philosophies. About a day is spent on the different approaches to
problem-solving techniques.
The workers also receive an explanation of the supervisors role as the groups discussion
leader and information on the quality circle concept. Thirdly, as is pointed out in the training, the
group is permitted to select the problems it wants to tackle. Management may suggest problems
of concern, but the group is empowered to decide which ones to select. Ideally, the selection
process is not by democratic vote but is arrived at by consensus, whereby everyone agrees on the
problem to be tackled.
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(If management has been pressing problems that need to be solved, these problems can be
handled in the same way that they were resolved before the introduction of quality circles).
When employees are allowed to select the problems they want to work on, they are likely to be
more motivated to find solutions. And they are also more likely to be motivated to stay on as
members of the circle and solve additional problems in the future.
C) SOCIO-TECHNICAL SYSTEMS: Another intervention to improve QWL is the use of
socio-technical systems. Socio-technical systems are interventions in the work situation that
restructure the work, the work groups, and the relationship between workers and the technologies
they use to do their jobs. More than just enlarging or enriching a job, these approaches may
result in more radical changes in the work environment.
D) AUTONOMOUS WORK GROUP: A more common, still rare, approach to employee
involvement is the use of autonomous work groups. These are teams of workers, without a
formal company-appointed leader, who decide among themselves most decisions traditionally
handled by supervisors. The key feature of these groups is a high degree of self-determination by employees
in the management of their day-to-day work. Typically this includes collective control over the
pace of work, distribution of tasks, organization of breaks, and collective participation in the
recruitment and training of new members. Direct supervision is often necessary.
QWL is more likely to improve as workers demand jobs with more behavioral elements.
These demands will probably emerge from an increasingly diverse and educated work force that
expects more challenges and more autonomy in its jobs such as worker participation
indecisions traditionally reserved for management.
BARRIERS TO QWL
o Resistance to change both by management and employees.
o There is a general perception that Q.W.L. implementation will cost much to the
organization
o Continuous increase in QWL may result in less productivity, i.e.., after a certain
level the productivity will not increase in proportion to the increase in QWL.
o Widespread unhappiness due to comparison with colleagues.
o Regional prejudice
o Skepticism about the performance appraisal system and promotion criteria.
HOW TO IMPROVE THE QWL?
In our country, recently many changes have introduced in the Government policies like
privatization. The Government organizations are mismanaged incurring heavy loss on public
money either due to corruption by bureaucrats intervention of politicians and Trade Union
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leaders and their affiliated political parties with the motives of winning elections. The scope for
transfer of technology has increased and inflow of investments from non-resident Indians
allowed. The privatization created many avenues for many unemployed people by reducing
severity of the problem. Hence, it is absolutely necessary to improvement in the Quality of Work
Life of our country.
Following are some suggestions that can help, to a large extent, improve Quality of working life
in India:
THE EMPLOYERS SHOULD
Provide physical amenities at the work place, health and safety and welfare provision.
Involve workers in decision-making on all matters.
Initiate suitable forms of work design
Formalize QWL experience for future use.
Develop an appreciation of changing environment.
THE UNIONS AND WORKERS SHOULD
Educate and make workers aware of QWL.
Identify areas of collaboration with management.
Encourage workers to participate in QWL activities.
THE PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS SHOULD
Organize workshops and seminars to bring about greater awareness of QWL.
Initiate specific research projects in this field.
Provide professional assistance to organizations to help generate internal competence.
Develop state-of art profiles on QWL.
THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD
Legislate standards and norms in newer areas.
Execute in policy to provide greater autonomy experiment with QWL.
Execute actions to ensure implementation of legislated facilities.
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Encourage and adopt appropriate technology.
Find projects on QWL.
TOP TEN TIPS TO IMPROVE QUALITY OF WORK LIFE (BY JUDY WORRELL
&BRIAN WARD)
The following ten tips are designed to get one thinking. They apply as much to the CEO as
they do to the front line worker:
1) HAVING A PERSONAL VISION -of who you want to be and what you want to do -
keep in mind that if you do not have one for yourself, you will likely become part of
someone else's vision!
2) TEST OUT ONES OWN PERSONAL VISION -with that of your organizations - in
how many ways do they support each other? Ask questions to better understand your
organization's mission, vision, and values.
3) LEARN, AND KEEP ON LEARNING -go training sessions and in-services, enroll in
college courses, read books. Know why, not just how.
4) BUDDY-UP -find ways to share the load with other team members. Sharing the load
makes work easier to manage and less stressful.
5) SHARE YOUR SUCCESSES-this allows you to learn from the successes of others, as
well as giving you a boost when you need
6) GET IT OFF YOUR CHEST- talk things over with your buddy, friend, supervisor when
things trouble you, dont keep it bottled up inside.
7) FIND JOY IN BEING OF SERVICE TO OTHERS-think about how the person you are
serving is better off as a result of your work, rejoice n that knowledge.
8) TAKE TIME FOR BREAKS-pay particular attention to the need to refresh body, mind
and spirit.
9) TRY OUT NEW IDEAS- to innovate is to grow. By using your creativity and innovation
life becomes exciting and fulfilling.
10) HAVE FUN AT WORK - laughter is the best medicine, but use only appropriate
humor. Damaging someone elses self esteem for the fun of it is no laughing matter.



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QWL AS A PHILOSOPHY
As a Philosophy QWL views people as assets capable of contribution skills, knowledge,
experience and commitment rather than as cost that are merely extensions of the production
process. It argues that encouraging involvement and providing the environment in which it can
flourish produces tangible rewards for both individuals and organizations.
COUNTRIES PRACTICING Q.W.L.
Sweden
Denmark
Holland
Switzerland
India
Australia
USA
COMPANIES PRACTICING Q.W.L.
GENERAL MOTORS - Faced labour problems like high ratio of absenteeism and labour
turnover and also high cost of operations.
FORD MOTORS AND CHRYSLER- It gave the excellent results like absenteeism and labour
turnover and also high cost of operations.
BHEL,Hardwar
TISCO
CONCLUSION
Quality of Work Life plays a vital role in Human Resource Management.QWL creative
awareness of workers in successful Organization.QWL in India can be improved through a
variety of instrumentalities like education and training, employee communication, union
participation, research projects, and appreciation of changing environment. A good human
resources practice would encourage all employees to be more productive while enjoying work.
Therefore, QWL is becoming an important human resources issue in all organizations. The
Quality of Work Life intends to develop enhance and utilize human resource effectively, to
improve Quality of products, services, productivity and reduce cost of production per unit of
output and to satisfy the workers psychological needs for self-esteem, participation,
recognition,etc., Improved Quality of Work Life leads to improved performance. Performance
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means not only physical output but also the behviour of the worker in helping his colleagues in
solving job related problems, team spirit and accepting temporary unfavourable work conditions
without complaints. An assured good Quality of Work Life will not only attract young and new
talent but also retain the existing experience talent.
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