Abstract:
The objective of this investigation was to ascertain if a different psychological contract was in existence among shop floor employees in a small to medium enterprise. This thesis sought to answer three research questions. A) What are the expectations of both Irish and non Irish employees. B) Are these expectations being met? C) What are the key differences if any between Irish and non Irish employees. In line with best practices according to literature a variety of investigation methods was used. A survey of employees was combined with interviews with senior management and data on overtime and absenteeism. The main findings showed that both groups reported their two most important expectations were not satisfactorily delivered. The top two expectations were traditional indicating that there is not the significant shift in the psychological contract that some literature suggests. Both Irish and non Irish employee groups have shown very similar expectations. There is some evidence to suggest that there are two distinct psychological contracts in existence. Irish employees were seen to have a slightly more relational contract then non-Irish employees. Relying on previous academic literature to explain the reason for the non-Irish employees having a more transactional contract may stem from their expectation of a short tenure with the organisation. The results also suggested that in general employees are. Irish employees possibly saw the unsatisfactory delivery of important expectations as a more serious violation of their psychological contract and withheld their performance to a greater extent than their non-Irish co-workers.
