This research focuses on the relationship between employability attributes, organisational commitment and retention factors within the context of staff retention in the 21st century workplace. A cross-sectional quantitative research approach was followed, and a probability stratified sample (N = 311) of mainly black and female participants participated in the study. A canonical correlation analysis indicated a significant overall relationship between the employability attributes/organisational commitment canonical variate and the retention factor canonical variate. Inferential statistics revealed significant differences between ethnicity, gender, age, job category and qualification level regarding these variables. The study also confirmed a positive relationship between employability attributes, organisational commitment and retention factors. Recommendations are made for use by human resource professionals in terms of the retention of valuable staff. / Human Resource Management / M. Com. (Human Resources Management)

South Africa has been brain drained of nurses and doctors and the Eastern Cape as a Province within South Africa is not an exception. Its rural nature has caused many nurses and doctors loose interest of serving in its facilities. This study sought to describe factors that can influence retention especially of nurses in the rural health facilities of the Eastern Cape Province and develop recommendations for nurse managers on how to retain nurses in rural areas. The major inferences drawn from this study is that nurses are dissatisfied with lack of promotional opportunities, lack of professional support, facing drastic responsibilities but with less income, tremendous workloads, emotional demands and unrealistic salary package. The researcher believes that the nurse managers have a crucial role to play in ensuring nurse retention and the recommendations drawn from this study can contribute in improving the work environment. / Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)

The aim of this research was to determine the factors that influence retention of personnel at Cor Jesu College in the Philippines and establish guidelines for effective staff retention. A qualitative research design involving the descriptive sample survey method to collect data by means of self- administered structured questionnaire was adopted. The sample consisted of 70 Cor Jesu personnel. The information was statistically analysed with the aid of a computer after which it was interpreted. Results indicated that teachers were not satisfied with their jobs and that their retention was affected by several aspects of their work. Working conditions emerged as the major source of dissatisfaction while interpersonal relations were a principal retention factor. / Educational Studies / M.A. (Education Management)

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology Human Resource Management in the Faculty of Business at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology / It is acknowledged that the South African Department of Education has accomplished some of its goals in changing the Further Education and Training (FET) sector through transformation initiatives such as mergers of colleges of education within a short period. The FET sector has made great strides in enhancing equity, redress of resource allocation and providing high quality education for all South Africans and enhancing access to Further Education and Training. However, the problem of staff retention and attraction still remains a setback. There is a growing concern in South Africa that the FET sector is losing or unable to retain its staff, with specific reference to academic and support staff. This problem is exacerbated by the growing number of learner enrolments within in the sector. This study investigated the factors affecting retention of staff within one specific FET college in Cape Town, South Africa. Due to the position taken by the said college on confidentiality and anonymity, the institution will be referred to as "College X". The objective was to assess the extent to which these factors influenced the decision to stay or leave College X. Linked to the objective was to come up with recommendations of how College X can build staff capacity and develop more innovative ways of attracting valuable talent and become an employer of choice. In order to assess the factors affecting retention in College X, the study used a blend of qualitative and quantitative research approach including the literature review. The survey questionnaires were used to collect data. In addition to the survey, the study also used focus group discussions. The study found that career development, remuneration and benefits, as well as performance management, were key in the retention of staff and this was congruent with the objectives of the study. However, the issue of culture, location, environment and leadership style varied across the college community but these were not deemed to be significant in the study. The study will confirm the important role that the factors affecting retention of talent plays in motivating employees to stay or quit College X. This study can be extended and repeated in a similar public FET college environment. Other possible areas for research include discovering from the entire FET sector what the factors are affecting the motivation of staff to stay or leave the sector. The study will also highlight the career development, remuneration and performance management which are critical factors to address if College X is to retain its staff and become competitive in the FET sector.

Thesis (MTech (Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / The hotel sector has been identified as experiencing the largest numbers of employees leaving their jobs within a short period of employment when compared to other sectors of the economy. The large number of employees leaving hotels within a short period of employment is perceived as detrimental towards business’ success. This research is about testing the strength of the relationship between employee retention variables and employee retention in hotels in Cape Town, South Africa. The researcher firstly consulted literature (secondary data) in order to understand the hotel employee retention phenomenon. From the literature findings, the objectives of this research were formulated. The research objectives were built based on the literature findings in order to assess the strength of relationships between employees’ perceptions of employee development, employee compensation, work engagement, good working relationship between line managers and subordinates, long working hours on the one hand; and employee retention in the hotel sector on the other hand. As the research aimed at testing relationships between variables, a quantitative research method was deemed the appropriate approach. Structured questionnaire surveys, using non-probability sampling, were applied in the form of a convenience approach. Hotels willing to participate in the study were selected, as Cape Town has a large population of hotels. Data for this study was collected over a period of ten months. A bivariate analysis was applied in this research in the form of correlation and Chi-square tests, after descriptive statistics were done. Reliability tests also measured the level of internal relatedness of the variables used to explain employee retention and related constructs. The variables and constructs used in this study were tested for relationships. The major results showed that there are highly significant relationships between employee retention, on the one hand, and employee compensation, employee development, working relationship, work engagement, and working hours, on the other hand.

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / This paper reviews retention strategies for Lesotho’s doctors and nurses and presented an implementation framework to support and promote staff retention. . Based on the increasing necessity to retain doctors and nurses, the implementation framework becomes an essential element of retention strategy. A qualitative and quantitative research design technique using a self-managed questionnaire and interviews was adopted to gather data. The 120 doctors and nurses make up a sample. The information was statistically analysed using SPSS and grounded theory. Results identified that the current implementation strategy has failed to increase the retention rate of doctors and nurses. It is hoped that the implementation framework presented in this paper would help to achieve increased retention rate for doctors and nurses.

The twenty first century has identified knowledge, as opposed to labour, raw materials or capital, as the key resource required by firms. This has created a shift of ownership in relationships between employees and employers since employees own the tools of production through the knowledge they hold (Kinnear & Sutherland, 2000). The employment relationship is undergoing fundamental changes due to international competition, de-regularisation and globalisation which have major implications for attraction, motivation and retention of talented employees (De Vos & Meganck, 2009). Organisations face great challenges and intense competition with almost all strategies being easily replicable by competitors. This has led organisations to begin realising that people are in fact the only real differentiator that can gain the organisation competitive advantage (Munsamy & Bosch Venter, 2009). Turnover of employees costs South Africa millions of rands per annum through decreased productivity, increased accidents and quality problems. Specifically, loss of knowledge workers are identified through costs of hiring and training new employees, loss of institutional knowledge, lower office morale, loss of talent and customer dissatisfaction. It is therefore essential to understand the reasons why employees leave organisations in order to discover how to retain them (Mendes & Stander, 2011; Gaylard, Sutherland & Viedge, 2005). Employee turnover can have several negative consequences. It can be difficult to replace the departed employees and the cost of replacing employees can be exhaustive. Remaining employees can be left feeling demoralised from the loss of valued co-workers and work patterns can be disrupted until replacements are found (Newstrom and Davis, 1997). Bilal, Zia-ur-Rehman, and Raza, (2010) add to this list of negative consequences of turnover as turnover can increase recruitment and training costs, loss of productivity as projects lose continuity, interruption of key activities, increase in mistakes made, or even hiring the wrong person for the position.

University of Fort Hare Human Resource Department reports show evidence relating to high labour turnover. Between 2009 and 2012 there was a high degree of labour turnover. A total 1127 staff left the University. This study investigated the relationship between job satisfaction, organisational commitment and intention to quit among academics and administrative employees at the University of Fort Hare. Data was collected from a random sample of 289 employees of the University staff. To obtain data in this study a questionnaire was utilised. This questionnaire was divided into four sections viz, biographical information, measured ten-items which range from age to condition of employment, Halpern’s (1966) seven-level evaluation scale was utilised to measure job satisfaction, to measure organisational commitment, Meyer, and Allen (1984) 24-item rating point scale was applied and Canmann, Fichman, Jenkins and Klesh’s questionnaire was used to measure intention to quit. Data analysis was performed by way of several statistical techniques, including the Pearson Product Moment Correlation Technique and Multiple Regression analysis. The results obtained revealed that job satisfaction has a significant positive correlation with intention to leave while organisational commitment showed no substantial correlation with intention to quit work.

Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Management Sciences: Human Resources Management, Department of Human Resources Management, Faculty of Management Sciences, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa. 2017. / Higher education institutions are particularly vulnerable to the loss of their highly qualified employees to better rewards and benefits from the private sector and other higher education institutions. Talent retention and employee turnover, therefore, are major concerns for higher education institutions (HEIs). Without well qualified and committed academic staff, no academic institution can really ensure sustainability and quality over the long-term. Owing to the competition for scarce skills, the attraction and retention of quality employees has emerged as the biggest challenge in human capital management, this phenomenon has also arisen in universities of technology. To attract and retain employees, organisations need novel reward systems that satisfy them. Employee rewards are an important component in exchange of employee contribution. It is generally accepted that employee rewards plays a significant role to attract, motivate, satisfy, retain and maintain commitment among employees in any organisation while ensuring a high standard of performance and workforce stability. Essentially, it is understood that reward systems in higher education institutions are at fault because they do not provide individuals with rewards that they value. The overall outcome of the study is to benefit employees, rewards practitioners and institutions by attracting and retaining talented employees. The study focuses on the academic staff at two universities of technology, namely, Central University of Technology and Tshwane University of Technology. A quantitative research approach was employed with a semi-structured questionnaire comprising a 5 Point Likert Scale to determine the influence of employee rewards on job satisfaction and organisational commitment among academic staff at universities of technology. The target population for the present study comprises all academic staff at Central University of Technology and Tshwane University of Technology (from level of lecturers, senior lecturers, head of departments and professors). The target population for this research was obtained from the Human Resources Management Department at both universities of technology. The source list indicates that both UOTs equated to staff of 1 089 (CUT = 296; TUT = 820). A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to 279 sample respondents of academic staff. Data obtained from 225 respondents and 8 uncompleted questionnaires yielded a response rate of 78%. Systematic sampling was used to select target respondents, nth element was drawn on every 4th element for the entire sample. The data collected from the responses were analysed with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and AMOS, version 24.0 for Windows. Three main data analysis techniques are employed: descriptive statistics, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling (SEM). Two models are employed in CFA to test dimensional structure of employee rewards. These include a model that allows all factors to be freely correlated, a proposed model was tested for correlation and a structural model. All factors are correlated because they measure one higher order factor, where all indicators test if they measure only one construct. The results of CFA provide solid statistical evidence that affirm relationship among constructs. However, some factors do not converge towards the job satisfaction construct in a South African context. Work-life balance and fringe benefits provided a negative correlation to job satisfaction. A significant statistical relationship is seen between employee rewards, job satisfaction and organisational commitment. The SEM results affirm that compensation, performance management, recognition, talent development and career opportunities have a positive and significant influence on job satisfaction. Job satisfaction has a significant effect on organisational commitment while total rewards components performance management, recognition, talent development and career opportunities has a positive and significant impact on organisational commitment. However, employee rewards have a significant effect on job satisfaction and organisational commitment. These results, therefore, can aid remuneration specialists in higher education institutions with specific reference to universities of technology to implement these total rewards components in order to affect job satisfaction while ensuring organisational commitment among academic staff. This study would benefit if these models are tested with an alternative data set. The research also suffered from a limitation common to survey research and SEM. Due to time and money constraints, it is a cross sectional sample at one specific point in time. As a result, while causal relationships can be inferred, they cannot be generalised towards other universities of technology in South Africa. / D

This research paper is broken up into three sections, namely an evaluation report, a literature review and a description of the research methodology. The evaluation report section is an assessment of the factors that could contribute to staff leaving the organisation and why staff would choose to remain with the organisation. The Distribution Division of Eskom is divided into nine separate Operating Units (OU's), in line with the nine Provinces. According to an Eskom Human Resource Manager (Mjali, 2013), as at March 2012 there were 2231 employees in the Easter Cape Operating Unit, while the staff turnover for the same period was 4.53%. Of the 101 staff that had resigned for the period 01 April 2011 to 31 March 2012, there were 27 transfers, 26 resignations and 30 retirements. The balance of 18 staff that left was due to dismissals and deaths. While the statistics suggest a healthy level of staff turnover at present, given the current pressures that Eskom employees are under, it is important to investigate their future intentions and to see what Eskom can do to continue to retain their services. The literature relating to staff turnover and retention was examined to determine the meaning of the terms retention and turnover and to review the relevant turnover topics that were emerging from the exit interview data. The research conducted was quantitative in nature, and a questionnaire was distributed to all managerial staff within the Eastern Cape Operating Unit of Eskom. The questionnaire was sent electronically to the participants via email with the link to the questionnaire. Participants were requested to respond on questions relating to factors on turnover and retention, and the responses were used to assess employee's intention to either remain with the organisation or to leave. The feedback received was analysed with the use of data analysis in Microsoft Excel (2010). The results of the research showed that there were two distinct themes related to employees' intention to remain with the organisation, namely job satisfaction and career development. On the other end of the scale, themes which would cause staff to want to leave the organisation were the performance management system of the organisation, not being listened to (i.e. to the ideas and views of staff) and leadership (i.e. the way the organisation was being led). Recommendations are made to management. The study also recommends future research that can be done to get greater insight into factors relating to staff turnover and retention. A detailed review of the literature is included in Section two of the report. Only essential components of the literature are included in Section one of report. Section three of the report provided a detailed description of the research design and the research procedure that was followed.