Job characteristics, engagement, burnout and organisational commitment of management staff at a platinum mine in the North-West province

Abstract

In the new world economy the hey differentiator of competitive advantage is an organisation's human resources. Increasingly, employees have to cope with multiple demands arising from various roles. often with limited resources and no guarantee of job security. In monitoring and improving employee effectiveness in coping with multiple new demands, stimulating their growth and enhancing their well-being as well as organisational performance, burnout and engagement are specific research areas. The objectives of this study were to investigate the relationships between burnout, engagement, job demands. job resources and organisational commitment of management staff at a platinum mine in the North-West Province, and to determine which variables best predict burnout, engagement and organisational commitment. A cross-sectional survey design was used. The study population consisted of management staff at a platinum mine in the North West Province (N = 202). The Job Demands-Resources Scale, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale: Maslach Burnout Inventory - General Survey, a Health Questionnaire, and an Organisational Commitment scale were administered. Descriptive statistics, product-moment correlation coefficients and multiple regression analyses were used to analyse the data. The results indicated that burnout correlated significantly with job demands, job resources, engagement, health and organisational commitment. Engagement, correlated significantly with job resources, health, and organisational commitment. Exhaustion was best predicted by workload. job insecurity and lack of resources whilst cynicism was predicted by poor organisational support and advancement opportunities. Engagement was best predicted by organisational support, and organisational commitment was predicted by both burnout and engagement. The health was predicted by exhaustion. Recommendations were made for future research.