Improving Productivity In The Construction Industry Through Human Resources Development

Improving Productivity In The Construction Industry Through Human Resources Development

Chapter One

Preface

Background To The Study

mortal Resource Management( HRM) is of strategic significance in all associations. It contributes to the success of the association and creates competitive advantage for the association( Rana & Rastogi, 2010). The way HRM practices and programs take shape also affects the hand’s gests of work and the employment relationship( Sambasivan, 2007). HRM is thus important in any association. The construction company is no different in this regard. still, the experimenter suggests that specific features of the construction company produce specific challenges for HRM in that environment, which aren’t extensively honored in the general operation, HRM or design operation( PM) literature( Thomas, 2012).

Construction is a process that consists of the structure or assembling of an structure. Large scale construction is a feat ofmulti-tasking. typically the job is managed by the design director who acts as the representative of the customer/ inventor( Hills etal., 2008) while the construction director is assigned with the part of supervising; the construction works, design mastermind, construction mastermind or design mastermind( Rojas & Aramvareekul, 2013). For the success of construction of any sustainable development design, numerous aspects must be taken into consideration, inclusive of planning and operation, similar as mortal resource, safety and health, construction detainments, the designs of armature and engineering, material vacuity and quality; the guests need, and fiscal or profitable limitations.

In this age of rapid-fire growth of globalization, numerous construction enterprises concentrate on the effective use of Human Resource Management( HRM) practices to gain competitive advantage to achieve the association’s objects and insure optimal performances among the workers. Construction assiduity is an important part of the frugality in numerous countries and frequently seen as a motorist of profitable growth especially in developing countries. generally, construction assiduity contributes to 11 of Gross Domestic Product( GDP) in utmost developing countries( RoK, 2003). The Nigerian construction assiduity is one of the most important sectors in the country’s frugality whose position of exertion is an index of the general profitable performance of the country.

The nature of construction assiduity, presents challenges and peculiar conditions in the developing nations( Ofori 1999). In order to check on performance and productivity, some measures in the construction assiduity have to be taken at colorful stages of socio- profitable development. numerous countries have set up special agencies to cover the operations in this assiduity and harness their eventuality for enhancement, although they’ve different objects, liabilities and situations of authority. The Construction Industry Council, for illustration in the UK, is a board which was initiated by the players in the construction assiduity to represent and support these players at public position. still, in developing countries like Nigeria the counterpart agencies like National Construction Authority and the National Construction Council of Tanzania( Miles and Neale, 1991) are government agencies controlled and managed by the government. The agencies in developing nations thus are confined in their accreditation rather than as assigned by the government authorities. In doing so, they’re likely to count crucial players in the construction assiduity especially the masons and casual labourers.

Productivity happens to be a significant aspect of construction assiduity that may be used as an indicator for effectiveness of product. Productivity is defined as a relationship between affair produced by a system and amounts of input factors employed by the system to yield that affair( Mbiti, 2008). Productivity is considered one of the most outstanding factors impacting timely completion of a design and cost control in all construction systems. Effective operation of construction coffers can lead to advanced productivity that can help to achieve cost and time savings( Sebastian & Raghavan, 2015).

Productivity remains an interesting subject and a dominant issue in the construction assiduity, promising cost savings and effective operation of coffers. still, Rundle( 1997) linked construction productivity as a cause of great concern. Ghate and Minde,( 2016) concurred with Rundle’s views in observing that construction productivity seems to have declined. On the other hand, Lawal( 2008) reported that in Nigeria, construction workers in the public service have nearly zero productivity. Kothari( 2004) linked poor productivity of tradesmen as one of the most daunting problems defying the construction assiduity especially in developing countries.

Olomolaiye et al( 1998) compactly studied labour productivity on construction spots in Nigeria. Their study concluded that there was a need for establishing affair numbers on colorful construction spots through time study ways. It was concluded that system studies and exploration results should be circulated not only to large enterprises but also to small enterprises so the most productive working styles( or stylish practices) could be espoused by operatives, performing in increased affair without inescapably adding physical trouble. Lim et al( 1995) studied factors affecting productivity in the construction assiduity in Singapore. Their findings indicated that the most important problems affecting productivity were difficulty with reclamation of administrators; difficulty with reclamation of workers; high rate of labour development; absenteeism from the work point; and communication problems with foreign workers. Olomolaiye et al( 1996) studied factors affecting productivity of tradesmen in Indonesia, with their findings indicating tradesmen in Indonesia spent 75 of their time working productively. Five specific productivity problems were linked ie lack of accoutrements ; rework; absenteeism; lack of outfit; and tools. Wachira( 1999) did a study in Kenya construction enterprises and set up that that labour productivity is affected by numerous factors including, experience of the pool; provocation; organisation of the work; type and condition of tools and outfit; and continual monitoring of performance. Tahir etal.,( 2015) observed that a lack of professed labourers ’ low quantum of pay, working seven days per week without taking a vacation, delineations and specifications revision during prosecution of design and poor relations between labour and administrators were the crucial issues. In another study, Lamka( 2015) linked three major factors that affect labour productivity in masonry and oil videlicet; lack of training/ chops, work planning & scheduling and unskillful administrators. A critical look at these factors reveals that they’re depended on the mortal resource operation practices. As added up by Sebastian and Raghavan( 2015), lack of proper directorial effectiveness is the introductory reason for all these issues. Pardo and Fuentes( 2003) stated that 15 of productivity loss occurs due to resource operation and 25 loss due to working terrain. Ghoddousi( 2015) revealed that Chief Executive Officers( CEOs) regard major aspects of mortal coffers operation as the most effective factors to increase productivity in construction systems. Monetary features of mortal resource operation similar as quantum, punctuality of payments and remuneration, as well as natural aspectse.g. satisfaction, ethical geste , creation, individual connections and job security were among the factors perceived by CEOs as the most influential determinant of productivity in road systems in Iran( Makulsawatudom, 2001).

Although numerous studies have strived to explain the goods of mortal resource operation practices on the performance of workers in the construction companies, a many have carried out an empirical study on the effect of mortal resource operation practices on productivity and none has looked at the moderating effect of hand engagement on labour productivity in the construction assiduity in Uyo, Nigeria. This exploration was, thus, to fill the gap by carrying out an empirical study to establish the effect of mortal resource operation practices on labour productivity. Mbiti( 2008) in his study in Kenya set up that, there’s an cornucopia force ofsemi-skilled and unskilled labour which needs to be employed. In order to give social and profitable advantage to the population, the construction assiduity has been under pressure to embrace stylish practices as one way of creating job openings for operatives in the job request. Construction process is an important means of expanding the job request in the frugality and thus every trouble should be made to ameliorate labor productivity. An enhancement in labor productivity will lead to enhancing design productivity and making it seductive to project guarantors.

The labor productivity on point might be affected negatively by a variety of factors which include; extraneous reasons like adverse goods of the rainfall, NCA, NEMA, original authorities, stakeholders and legislation. Masu( 2006) argues that Nigeria being a developing country isn’t an exception to the trends in other countries which are at crossroads with the structure brigades due to the latterly not delivering the systems within the quested time. Detainments on point has caused losses on design’s profit to the contractor; increased cost to the customer and strained the working relationship between the parties in a design. This has been brought about by the lack of acceptable information on labor productivity rates in the construction assiduity in Nigeria( Wachira, 1999). The inaccurate determination of exertion duration has in utmost cases led to the incorrect estimation of contract ages. Detainments in completion of systems in the construction assiduity are pointers of productivity problems and hence a big challenge facing the construction assiduity. An bettered labor productivity is one of the crucial determinants of systems vaticination and thus an important component of construction delivery.

Statement Of The Problem

Unlike other diligence, construction assiduity is substantially design- grounded. The construction systems have the general characteristics of limited budget, schedule, and quality norms with a series of complex and interrelated conditioning. According to Burke( 2010), it requires the cooperation of all design actors that includes guests, directors, contrivers, contractors, constructors, design directors, design platoon and advisers . There are numerous mortal resource issues that will lead to poor performance of construction systems similar as poor design work design and structure, deficit of good professed workers, changing pool demography, a high rate of hand development and high rate of collapse among construction workers( tax, 2000).

The deficit of good professed workers is also one of the common issues among the construction enterprises. According to Borcherding( 2009), there’s a “ disturbing trend ” in construction in which there’s a “ growing deficit of professed workers and educated directors ”. He further claimed that “ the failure of both professed trades- people and educated directors will place further emphasis on the need to increase the quality and volume of training in order to produce further effective and productive workers. thus, due to the lack of proper webbing process, selection styles and poor reclamation procedure will affect poorly on the success rate of the construction systems and thus lead to low productivity and growth of the construction establishment( Enshassi, 2007).

In the construction assiduity, the labor request is always changing and modifying due to the reduction of good workers and also due to the changing demographics of the pool. One of the factors is due to the aging of construction pool that’s growing aged over the long term. thus, mortal resource operation has come more important to the construction assiduity to overcome the changing pool demographics( Heizer & Render, 1990).

There’s incontrovertibly a high rate of hand development in the construction assiduity currently. According to Horner( 2011) the two major factors that beget hand termination is “ perceived ease of movement ” and “ perceived advisability ” that related to hand’s career satisfaction. Hand voluntary and involuntary termination are substantially due to poor job performance, absenteeism or violation of plant programs, firing or discharge, or leaving the company of her own volition, shifting to a new area or other reasons. The worst consequences of the high hand development are the loss of gift, loss of productivity, waste of time and cost to train a relief. It’s estimated that the cost is nearly doubly of an hand’s payment to find and train a relief, and might damage morale among being workers.

Despite the enterprises on lack of acceptable productivity information, little exploration attention and attestation has been accepted on construction spots to establish labor productivity data for consideration in design planning, going and budgeting in the construction assiduity in Nigeria. thus, this study seeks to assess the effect of mortal resource operation practices on productivity in the construction diligence in Uyo.

Objects Of The Study