Esta pesquisa enfoca as dinâmicas econômicas, sócio-ambientais e políticas de organização, construção da identidade coletiva e empoderamento de trabalhadores em associações de reciclagem, levando-se em conta suas relações com diversos agentes externos. A escolha desse objeto do estudo prende-se a dois aspectos principais: - à caracterização dessa atividade como uma ocupação em estruturação e processo de reconhecimento, representando uma possibilidade de sustentabilidade e autonomia para setores da população de baixa renda em países em desenvolvimento; - a uma situação peculiar de relação entre Estado e sociedade, na qual as associações de catadores/recicladores interagem simultaneamente com órgãos dos governos municipais respectivos, do governo estadual e com entidades não-governamentais, como setores da Igreja Católica e ONGs nacionais e internacionais. Através da análise comparativa das características de três associações de reciclagem na Região Metropolitana de Porto Alegre, verificam-se resultados diferenciados no que diz respeito a processos internos de organização do trabalho e de participação nas decisões, bem como em relação às percepções, motivações e expectativas dos catadores/recicladores quanto a sua ocupação. / This research focuses on the economic, socio-environmental and political dynamics related to organization, construction of collective identity and empowerment of workers in recycling cooperatives, taking into account their relationships with several external agents. The choice of this object relies on two main aspects: - the characterization of this activity as an occupation being structured and recognized, representing a possibility of sustainability and autonomy for sectors of low income people in developing countries; - a peculiar kind of State-civil society relation, in which recycling cooperatives interact simultaneously with local and regional public entities, and non-governmental organizations, like catholic institutions or other NGOs. Through a comparative analysis of characteristics of three recycling cooperatives in Porto Alegre Metropolitan Region, distinct results were found, concerning internal processes of work organization and decision-making participation, as well as the perceptions, motivations and expectations of the recycling workers towards their occupation.

Orientador: Iris Bento da Silva / Dissertação (mestrado profissional) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Mecânica / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-19T00:48:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Azambuja_Renato_M.pdf: 4532092 bytes, checksum: f4ac5caeb5c44a92c458194fa87ea428 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011 / Resumo: Atualmente, a manufatura enxuta tem sido utilizada como um diferencial competitivo pelas indústrias automobilísticas. O objetivo deste trabalho é a aplicação das ferramentas, conceitos e metodologias do sistema de manufatura enxuta numa linha de montagem de motores diesel pelos próprios trabalhadores de chão-de-fábrica a partir da disseminação do conhecimento sobre o tema. O método pesquisa-ação será utilizado para o desenvolvimento deste estudo, a fim de se propor melhorias no ambiente produtivo por meio da aplicação dos conhecimentos adquiridos pelos trabalhadores em um sistema de manufatura enxuta, visando maior produtividade, menor custo, menor desperdício, ganho de qualidade, melhor organização, proporcionando mudanças no ambiente de trabalho que contribuam para a agregação de valor nas atividades dos trabalhadores envolvidos / Abstract: Currently, the lean manufacturing has been used as a competitive differential for the automobile companies. The objective of this work is the application of the tools, concepts and methodologies of the lean manufacturing in a diesel engine assembly line by the proper workers through the dissemination of the knowledge about the subject. The method research-action will be used for the development of this study, in order to consider improvements in the productive environment by means of the knowledge application acquired for the workers in a lean manufacturing system, aiming at more productivity, less cost, less wastefulness, increase of quality, better organization, providing changes in the work environment that contribute for the value's aggregation in the worker's activities / Mestrado / Manufatura / Mestre em Engenharia Automobilistica

M.A. (Social Work) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.A. (Social Work) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

D.Litt. et Phil. / There have been numerous approaches to Knowledge Management (KM) over the past number of years. In addition there is also confusion amongst enterprises and enterprise management as to the role and contribution of KM, the differences between information management, information technology and KM. There has been an overflow of information and “knowledge” in large enterprises and this situation will only worsen if not managed appropriately. Knowledge is now universally accepted as a factor of production and similar to other factors of production viewed as being scarce and expensive. The knowledge inventory of an enterprise should thus be managed in a similar manner as physical inventory – kept at the essential minimum level and to be provided at the time that it is required. The challenge to creating a successful knowledge enterprise is more reliant on the people aspects than technology per se and this view is supported by recent research. This situation is exacerbated by the diversity of participation amongst knowledge workers who as a “grouping” speaks a different language based on their perspectives of issues within and external to the enterprise. Because knowledge is not synonymous with information, information technology cannot deliver knowledge management, yet a large proportion of managements view information technology as the panacea for their failure at implementing successful KM or what they consider to be KM. Another concern of management is that current management approaches cannot handle imperfect information with certainty. Enterprises are thus faced with the situation of not being able to deliver the right information to the right person at the right time because enterprises are unable to predict what is the right information to distribute, who the right recipients of that information should be and all of this may take place under conditions of uncertainty – as found in today’s dynamic business environment. Defining knowledge from an enterprise management perspective or in terms of an organisational context present a number of issues. The most important being that there is no single all encompassing definition of KM. However, in terms of the objectives of this research a definition which relate the dimensions of time, delivery, the right information and the right recipient is applied. KM varies from the perspective of controlling knowledge processes within the enterprise to methods applied to the extraction of knowledge from the flow of information, internal and external to the enterprise. Recent thinking on KM distinguishes between demand-side KM and supply-side KM. The supply-side of KM is associated with the “delivery-oriented” assumptions that valuable knowledge exists within the enterprise and that it is the task of management to find it, codify it and place it into a repository. This is then followed by an approach which “decrees” and determine how it is to be distributed, e.g. via learning, databases, documents, etc. and to whom. Demand-side KM is initiated with an approach requiring a view of where does valuable knowledge exist within the enterprise, is what is required in existence, does it support the enterprise's strategies and how can the use thereof benefit the enterprise's competitive advantage? Obviously the proponents of both of these sides do see the need for closing the gap between supply and demand and that they are in fact complimentary activities. A view is taken on the KM approach / practices undertaken by the enterprise. There are a number of KM taxonomy approaches based upon the process applied in the enterprise to extract knowledge. An understanding of the different approaches employed is necessary to locate the role of the knowledge worker in the overall KM value chain. The knowledge processes approach is considered to be a factor of production where the person is central to the process as the carrier or owner of knowledge. Communication amongst individuals is of primary importance, especially in respect of the management of the enterprise and its outputs. This approach also considers an enabling culture in the enterprise to be a pre-requisite to the successful management of knowledge. The focus of this approach is on knowledge transfer through human interaction. Technology is recognised as playing a supporting role in this approach. Knowledge is more than information and also considers experience, skills, competencies and attitudes as part of knowledge created in the process of human interaction. The term Just-in-Time (JIT) can be defined as a production or inventory scheduling technique found within the more complex production logistics disciplines. JIT is more appropriately thought of as a philosophy as it is more than a mere set of management and production principles. KM JIT is an endeavour to provide the right knowledge at the right time to the right person. This requires an insight into the knowledge demand and supply process as well as the time horizon applicable to the knowledge required. Over the longer term business forecasts, environmental scans, strategic planning, etc. can be applied to close the gap between these variables. However, it is in the short term and immediate requirements that the present systems fail and management concerns are emphasised. To summarise the relationship: JIT KM searches for an optimisation of the matching process between demand and knowledge supply within enterprises, i.e. it endeavours to translate the logistic concept of JIT to the knowledge management field. In addition to JIT KM the concept of real-time KM is introduced as an alternative since present research indicates that the implementation of JIT KM presents major issues in terms of cost and development effort, restricting its use to mission critical applications. A more generic application for JIT KM need to be developed and it is contended that real-time KM fits the requirements of enabling the enterprise to be agile in respect of its ability to respond to present and future knowledge demands. The major difference between JIT KM and real-time KM being the latency of information concept which applies to the latter.

M.A. (Social Work) / The workplace, as an arena for social work practice, demands a paradigm of service delivery, addressing needs on both a micro and macro level. The social worker is in the ideal position to facilitate organization development by addressing individual and environmental issues. Social workers are however trained in generic social work practice and therefore do not necessarily posses the required skills to work on a macro level Within the workplace. A training programme to train social workers in organization development therefore needed to be developed. During the literature study it was found that the ecological perspective provides a useful theoretical framework when bringing about organizational development in social work practice. Due to the dual focus. on the person and environment, the ecological perspective as discussed in chapter two, serves as the basis for a programme in organizational development. An overview of organization development, as intervention strategy, is given in chapter three. The functions, characteristics and underlying values are discussed, and the development process is positioned within the ecological perspective. The final chapter of the literature study focuses on an organization development programme, suitable for the social work practitioner within the workplace. The training model is described in chapter five and chapter six offers an overview of the research methodology used. An integrated developmental research model serves as methodology whereby this research is conducted. The training model is designed and a pilot test conducted to determine the social worker's attitude towards this intervention strategy in organizational development. The analysis of research data (See chapter 7) obtained from administering the questionnaires showed that social workers (westem Province Command, South African National Defence Force) found in-service training for social workers practising within the workplace as a necessity. Proper contextualisation of individual problems is essential to address issues on macro level. The final chapter deals with specific conclusions and recommendations regarding in-service training of social workers wtthtn the workplace. The value of a macro orientation to social work practice inthe workplace was found necessary for effective service delivery.

M.A. (Social Science) / The work environment in which social workers are fulfilling their duties are today demanding more and more of them. These demands are different from those demands of other professions and is the result of the distinctiveness of the helping professions. Social workers boast that they are because of their work situation always in a state of emotional exhaustion. To this the literature refers as the burnout syndrome. Articles and research reports on the topic of burnout appeared in the past on a regular basis and are new articles and reports published regularly. A research study was undertaken to determine what the extent of burnout is in social workers and to determine if there are reason for the widespread claims that they are victims of the burnout syndrome. The aim was also to determine those factors that are involved in causing burnout. A literature study were undertaken with the aim to describe the burnout syndrome. The literature showed that burnout is a syndrome characteristic of the helping professions. The literature also describes specific elements by which burnout could be recognised. It further gave some indications of those factors that are instrumental in the development of burnout. A sample were selected, a questionnaire compiled and distributed with the aim to collect information on the appearance of burnout. The results of the study showed different results. The most important result that was established was the lack of high levels of burnout in the sample. Only a small percentage of the respondents displayed high levels of burnout. The results also indicated that work dissatisfaction, a lack of autonomy, role problems (role conflict and role ambuguity) related to high levels of burnout. A sample were selected, a questionnaire compiled and distributed with the aim to collect information on the appearance of burnout. The results of the study showed different results. The most important result that was established was the lack of high levels of burnout in the sample. Only a small percentage of the respondents displayed high levels of burnout. The results also indicated that workdissatisfaction, a lack of autonomy, role problems (role conflict and roleambuguity) related to high levels of burnout in respondents. The results of the study led to certain recommendations concerning the prevention of burnout in social workers.

Master of Public Health - MPH / Nigeria is experiencing shortages of health care workers within its national health services, especially with respect to doctors, nurses and pharmacists. These shortages are traceable to, among other factors, low job satisfaction, which leads to health care workers exiting the national health services, as well as reduced entry of health care workers into the health care system. Understanding the nature of job satisfaction and its causes is critical to informing strategies to halt attrition of the health workforce. The current study surveyed job satisfaction among 180 health care workers, employed in 20randomly selected primary health care centres in the Bwari Area Council of Abuja in the Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria. An observational, descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted using the abbreviated form of the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential statistics were calculated using Epi Info v3.1 statistical software. The results from the study revealed that more than half of the respondents (53.2%), were dissatisfied to varying degrees with their current employment. Out of the respondents that said they were dissatisfied, 33.3% stated that they were likely to leave their current employment. The most salient causes for job dissatisfaction were: (1) Institutional factors such as management support (69%); (2) Implementation of policies and procedures (66%); (3) Employee benefits including salaries and wages (33%) and other benefits (56%). It is pertinent to note that issues related to poor implementation of policies and procedures in the work place, and poor conditions of employment need to be addressed urgently to prevent the imminent loss of a third of the workforce to either private health institutions in the country or international migration.

There are many problems associated with night shift work, involving both the disruption of social activities and the desynchrony between internal biological clock timing and the forced regimen. Both short term problems (e.g. sleep deficiency, reduced alertness and reduced performance) and potential long term problems (e.g. coronary heart disease and diabetes) may be critically dependent on whether or not the worker is able to adapt to the shift regimen. In the first of two baseline studies, the 6-sulphatoxymelatonin rhythms of offshore oil workers on a two-week 12-hour night shift (1800h to 0600h) were shown to adapt to the regimen within the first seven days of the shift. The rates of phase shift (mean +/- sem) were 1.51 +/- 0.16 h/day (n=5), 1.32 +/- 0.41 h/day (n=5) and 1.77 +/- 0.31 h/day (n=17) for a winter drill crew, winter maintenance crew and summer maintenance crew respectively. The rate of adaptation was not significantly affected by the type of work conducted or the season. The second baseline study assessed the 6-sulphatox-5-onelatonin rhythms of offshore drill crews on a one-week day shift (1200h - 0000h), one-week night shift (0000h - 1200h) 'swing' shift. A crew studied in winter showed no change in their 6-sulphatoxymelatonin rhythm during night shift, while a crew studied in spring showed a significant phase advance to an acrophase position of 0051h +/-1.7 hours (mean +/- sem). This data, together with that of the first baseline study, indicate that both the type of shift and the season influence the direction and degree of adaptation. A simulation study was conducted to assess the hormonal and metabolic response to a test meal during the first night of night shift (1800h to 0600h). Both plasma glucose and insulin levels were elevated on night shift compared to day shift, suggesting a degree of glucose intolerance during this period. Treatment with bright light (1500 lux) throughout the night shift reduced the glucose intolerance observed and also lowered plasma triacylglycerol levels. The use of exogenous melatonin to help shift workers acclimatise to day shift following night shift was examined. Exogenous melatonin significantly increased sleep duration compared to placebo. There was also evidence of increased daytime napping and stabilization of sleep onset time under this treatment. While no specific adaptation rates could be observed, exogenous melatonin did not appear to have an adverse effect on the adaptation of the melatonin and alertness rhythms when taken at the desired bedtime. The data clearly show that adaptation of the melatonin rhythm to night shift is possible in certain environments. Further evidence of the deleterious effects of night shift on metabolic and hormonal responses to a nighttime meal has been observed, but the use of bright light treatment may be a potential solution to this problem. While the benefits of exogenous melatonin treatment on sleep may be of use offshore, an increased incidence of daytime napping, observed during melatonin treatment, may be of concern for its use in an offshore environment.

Organisations worldwide are continuing to offshore more and more of their work tasks across national boundaries, to countries with lower labour costs. These offshored tasks, which were performed by local knowledge workers in the past, now also include activities like research, development, and innovation. In a time where growth industries are those with the highest degree of knowledge work, and the most profitable organisations are those with the most knowledge workers, the importance of retaining these valuable resources by ensuring a healthy employment relationship cannot be over emphasised. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact that knowledge task offshoring has on the employment relationship of knowledge workers. A quantitative research methodology was followed, and the responses of 85 individuals were examined through the theoretical lenses of the psychological contract, organisational commitment, turnover intention and job insecurity. The main findings of the research was that offshoring resulted in higher levels of perceived psychological contract breach and violation scores, while it did not have any negative impacts on the scores for job security, turnover intention, organisational commitment or perceived employer or employee obligations associated with the psychological contract. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / lmgibs2014 / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / MBA / Unrestricted