BANGKOK, Thailand, Dec. 6 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- A new international
workplace survey by Kelly Services has found that more than half of Thai
employees are happy in their work, and they also believe that their bosses
are doing a good job.
The survey by the Fortune 500 global staffing leader, Kelly Services,
found that 54% of Thai employees were either happy or very happy with their
current position.
The quality of Thai bosses has received praise from employees. Asked to
score their bosses out of 10, the average score employees gave their bosses
was a strong 6.9. The world's employees gave an average score of 6.7 out of
10 for their bosses. Although a relatively positive rating, this suggests
that globally, there is considerable room for improvement in management-
employee relations.
The Kelly Global Workforce Index sought the views of approximately
70,000 employees in 28 countries including Thailand. The global analysis
was undertaken by a leading independent statistician, Statistics Workshop,
based in Sydney, Australia.
The survey found that Thai employees ranked 23rd globally and 6th in the
Asia-Pacific region, just ahead of Singapore, for the highest percentage of
happy employees. Indonesia and India ranked an equal 1st, followed by
Australia and New Zealand. Malaysia ranked ahead of Hong Kong in the
region.
A number of nations showed a remarkably positive picture of the quality
of their management. Mexico, USA, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia
and India all scored 7 or above. The most contented employees in the global
study were in Denmark, Mexico and Sweden and the least happy in Hungary,
Russia and Turkey.
Thailand's bosses have been given a surprisingly good rating by their
employees.
The score of 6.9 out of 10 places Thailand 9th on a world scale. The
best bosses were in Mexico, USA and Canada and employees least happy with
their bosses in Sweden, Italy and Turkey.
In the Asia Pacific region, Thailand sits equal fourth with Indonesia,
just behind New Zealand, Australia and India. Malaysia, Singapore and Hong
Kong, all scored less than 7.
"This result suggests that many organisations around the world and in
Thailand can probably do better at developing workplace practices that keep
their employees engaged and motivated", said Ms. Wanna Assavakarint, Country
Manager for Kelly Services, Thailand.
"Managers need to examine how they can lift performance and increase the
level of communication and team spirits within their organisation. They may
need to take time to ensure that they better connect with staff and provide
them direction, feedbacks and guidance to work towards organization goals"
she says.
Employers were rated on four attributes -- communication, leadership,
team spirit and delegation skills. In Thailand, employees felt that bosses
were best at delegating effectively and weakest when it comes to
communication and team spirit.
Younger employees in Thailand viewed their bosses more favourably, while
women rated their bosses slightly higher than men.
On the question of who makes the best bosses -- men or women - the vast
majority of Thailand employees (69%) said it makes no difference. But 19%
said they preferred a male boss compared with 12% preferring a female boss.
Some 69% of employees in Thailand said that their bosses rewarded them
for a job well done while 26% said they were rewarded rarely or never.
"It's important to try and find what makes a contented and motivated
workforce because employees who enjoy their work will make a more effective
contribution to the performance of the organization", comments Ms.
Assavakarint.
"The best employers understand this and provide people with interesting
and challenging work as well as opportunities to learn and more fully
develop their own skills."
"If we look at what employees say is important to them, they want a
workplace with good morale, stimulating work, a degree of autonomy, and one
where they receive feedback from their bosses".
"Simply taking the time to tell someone when they've done a good job or
provide some constructive feedback can make a big difference".
"Many employers in Thailand recognise this but it's not universal.
Sometimes senior managers are so busy managing the business they frequently
overlook the people aspects, which are so important," Ms. Assavakarint said.
This global insight from employees themselves provides a frank
assessment of the quality of management across national borders and the
effectiveness of management performance which can make an enormous
contribution to the nation's economic prosperity.
Kelly Services, Inc. (Nasdaq: KELYA; KELYB) is a Fortune 500 company
headquartered in Troy, Michigan (USA), offering staffing solutions that
include temporary services, staff leasing, outsourcing, vendor on-site and
full-time placement. Kelly operates in 30 countries and territories. Kelly
provides employment for nearly 700,000 employees annually, with skills
including office services, accounting, engineering, information technology,
law, science, marketing, light industrial, education, health care and home
care. Revenue in 2005 was US$5.3 billion. Visit
http://www.kellyservices.com
Media contact:
Jaruwan Ngampisutpaisarn
Kelly Services Thailand
Tel: 662-670-0505
Fax: 662-670-0509
Email: Jaruwan_n@kellyservices.co.th
