A PROPOSAL ON RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WORK STRESS AND DEVIANT WORKPLACE BEHAVIOUR AMONG CONTRACT BANK EMPLOYEES IN LAGOS STATE

Abstract

The study will investigate the relationship between work stress and Deviant workplace behaviour among contract Bank Employees in Lagos state. The following objectives will be used for the study: following objectives will be ascertained; To establish the relationship between work stress and deviant workplace behaviours among contract bank employees in Lagos state, to deduce a theoretical framework that could be used to effectively address workplace deviant behaviours in the Nigerian banking industry and to find out whether stress of contract bank employee reduce job satisfaction and increases deviant workplace behavior in the banking sector. The method of data analysis that will be used by the researcher is the simple percentage. More so, percentage and degrees of the responses will also be used in the analysis. Here, the ratio of those whose responses were not in the affirmative will be found and conclusions will be drawn there upon.  Representations of the level of responses will be made in tabular form. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software will be used to test the hypotheses

Chapter one

Introduction

1.1Background of the study

Organisations operate according to instructions, guidelines and principles, and there is an expectation for every member of an organisation to act in line with the rules. As stated by Robinson and Bennett (1995), workplace deviant behaviour is a controlled action by employees, which is in contrast to key organisational values that threatens the organisation and its member’s well-being. Workplace deviant behaviour may either be negative or positive. As stated in Appelbaum, Iaconi and Matousek (2007), positive deviant behaviour, as noted by Spreitzer and Sonenshein (2003), is a deliberate behaviour set apart from the norm of a group of individuals in a decent manner. Appelbaum et al. (2007) posited that, previous researches have focussed mainly on negative behaviours, which are perceived as deviant, for instance, concealing effort, absenteeism, withdrawal, and behaviours that result in inequity in the workplace. The prevalence of deviant behaviour, for example, fraud, sexual harassment, theft, suppression of efforts and hostile behaviours pose great challenges to organisations (Lawrence & Robinson, 2007; Peterson, 2002a; Aquino, Galperin & Bennett, 2004). Hence, this study is concerned with the negative aspect of workplace deviant behaviour, also known as negative deviant behaviour (Appelbaum, et. al., 2007). In fact, workplace deviant behaviours seem to have become more and more visible concern for both academicians and practitioners, as they have become considerably disturbing, owing to their damaging effects on employees and their organisations. Hence, in recent times, organisational behaviour researchers have picked interest in addressing deviant organisational behaviour (Greenberg & Baron, 2003). This is because it can become a difficult and expensive problem with regards to the monetary toll that it takes on organisations, as well as the emotional toll that it takes on employees (Greenberg & Baron, 2003). The costs of workplace deviant behaviours are severe, as they could affect the organisation’s rankings, including decision-making, costs and efficiency (Appelbaum, Iaconi, & Matousek, 2007).

An increased interest in the workplace deviant behaviours has been nurtured over the past ten years, as huge corporations such as Tyco and Enron have made public, the characteristic menaces of workplace deviant behaviours (Appelbaum, Deguire & Lay, 2005). Hence, workplace deviant behaviours, such as, withholding efforts, fraud, maltreatment of co-workers, and absenteeism, remain a tenacious concern for a lot of organisations across the globe (O’Neill, Lewis & Carswell, 2011; Restubog, Garcia, Wang & Cheng, 2010).

In fact, the approach or nature of business activities undertaking in the Nigerian banking industry, predicts the occurrence of corrupt practices in the industry, as banks and other allied institutions deal with finances and monetary transactions, which make bank employees more susceptible to fraudulent practices (Owolabi & Babalola, 2011). There are often apprehensions about disreputable practices and fraud within the Nigerian banking industry, irrespective of regulations and examination by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, as well as by the Central Bank of Nigeria (Chiezey & Onu, 2013). As posited by Ajayi (2003), fraud is endemic in Nigeria, and reflects in many areas of business activities in the country. In fact, the deviant behaviours that prevail in the Nigerian banking industry include offensive dressing and sexual harassment. This trend could be linked to the aftermath of the capitalization policy, introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2009. This policy resulted in increased awareness by all existing banks, forcing banks to transform into a more vicious monetary institution that could be able to meet up with the new challenges triggered by the CBN capitalisation policy (Ilupeju, 2008). This new arrangement precipitated unjustified conditions for employees, particularly the female ones, who were coerced to woo and accommodate depositors at all cost, and even at times, to the detriments of their personal wellbeing (Ilupeju, 2008). Olufayo (2011) also claims that in recent times in the Nigerian banking industry, instructions were given to marketing departments to recruit mainly young, elegant and attractive female employees, who could use their bodies to solicit funds from willing customers. In addition, bullying is also seen as common in the Nigerian banking industry. Ayodele and Bello (2008) stated that beyond being hostile, bullying is directed to cause damage or pain, which occurs repeatedly, and happens in a situation where there is an imbalance of control or strength. An investigation by Oghojafor, Muo and Olufayo (2012) discovered that 91% of the respondents agreed that bullying incidents are escalating in Nigerian workplaces, particularly in the banking industry

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