The impact of multiculturalism at work on job satisfaction and organisational commitment in a tertiary institution

Abstract

This dissertation looks at the existence of multiculturalism within the North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus after the merger. It also assesses the extent to which there is organisational commitment and job satisfaction within this institution of higher learning. Using frequencies and descriptive statistics, the article provides an overview of the extent of the impact of multiculturalism on organisational commitment and job satisfaction in the identified institution. Furthermore, the article evaluates the extent of relationships between multiculturalism as an independent variable and organisational commitment and job satisfaction as dependent variables. Data collected from 250 respondents using the self-administered questionnaires was analysed using SPSS. The results show that respondents’ self-assessment of their productivity is affirmative. It also indicates that most respondents are satisfied with their work and their responses to the intention to leave the organisation are in the negative. Contrary to the position of most researchers in previous literature, data collected in this study shows that multiculturalism does not result in the sampled employees intending to leave the organisation. It also indicates that the respondents do not show any negative effect of multiculturalism. This positive impact may be attributed to the fact that most respondents indicated their commitment to the institution and satisfaction with their work. The results of this study should be interpreted in the context of academia. In this regard, in a different environment, multiculturalism may be found to result in different findings. Therefore, the findings cannot be generalised to other sectors and industries. In addition, it is safe to generalise the findings only to the Campus at which the study was conducted. Findings of this study show that there is no relationship between multicultural norm and practices and organisational commitment as well as job satisfaction. It nonetheless shows that most employees are productive and satisfied and have no intention to leave the institution. The study recommends that the institution adopts a focused approach to nurturing multiculturalism. In order to improve multiculturalism, it is recommended that the institution creates awareness and trains employees about diversity. It is also recommended that the North-West University enhances job satisfaction through team building activities.