Introduction
Members of a socially inclusive society should have opportunities, resources as well as capability to learn through participation in education and training; and they should be able to work through participation in voluntary work, employment plus in family. The society should provide an environment that allows members to engage by making connections with people as well as the capacity to use the local community resources.
The members of the society need to have a voice to influence decisions that have direct impacts on them. When people do not have the capacity to participate in learning or working among other activities and they are also not able to influence decisions that affect them, then they are likely to experience social exclusion (Brown 1995, 29).
Young people are often faced with many obstacles and opportunities in job places where they work after attaining their tertiary qualifications. The choices made by young people during early stages of life have significant influence on their career trajectories.
Young people may sometimes not receive adequate information as well as guidance on the consequences of following certain occupational pathways. Besides, they are also not given the opportunity to discuss matters affecting them in the labour market. The reality of many modern workplaces shows an under-utilisation of skills as well as reduction of job boundaries.
Personal Factors
Gender and Race
According to Alison, Lorna and Vanessa (2006, 381) young people are not given formal opportunities to discuss ethnic and gender in relation to the labour market. Some jobs are highly segregated in terms of gender and therefore there is no equal balance of both female and male. Some sectors are heavily female or male dominated.
This is mainly because of stereotypes held by most people that some jobs are better performed by one gender than the other. Educational choices in tertiary levels of education that are made by girls and boys influence the occupational distributions hence creating segregations in the labour market. In such sectors or organizations, recruitment of employees is biased towards one gender although a few from the other gender are also recruited to perform certain jobs which are considered to be appropriate for them.
Some jobs are advertised specifically for a particular gender thereby blocking the other gender from applying for the job. This is likely to create inferiority or superiority between the genders depending on which gender is given a more superior or inferior job. Besides, one gender, especially the superior gender in the workplace may mistreat or sit on the inferior gender. In cases where the inferior gender consists of few people, they are likely to feel insecure and lose confidence of performing their duties.
However, in some workplaces that are dominated by one gender, there is more effectiveness and efficiency in performing activities. They are able to share their ideas and easily understand one another. In such places, the one gender is able to pull their strength together whenever there is need. One finds the orientation and introduction into the job quite easier especially if he or she is from the dominant gender.
According to Two-Eagle (2008) men are generally paid more than their female counterparts. The amounts paid to all women collectively in the US in 1970s were $.51 per dollar on what the males earned. White females earned $.70 of their white male counter parts.
A review of salaries still show that males earn more than females and that salary differences also exist in both gender and most races. Race may also affect appraisals in the workplace especially in companies that the majority is from one ethnic community. Ethnicity and racism in a workplace is likely to create discrimination.
Experiences of daily discrimination in a workplace can possible lower motivation and engagement in the job and in the organisation as well. When an individual becomes aware of the negative stereotypes held by those he or she is working with or those in the management positions of the organisation about his or her race or ethnic community, he or she would not want to engage in activities that would confirm the stereotypes even if they could be beneficial to the company.
Class
Economic class can also affect an individual’s job outcome both negatively and positively. If you happen to come from a low income family or a low housing community, then it is possible that you will carry the stigma for decades and this is likely to affect how you relate with others at the workplace.
Your confidence and self-esteem will automatically be affected. Social class also determines the jobs one applies for. Those from the middle and high class are confident and have high self-esteem. They find it easier to interact in the workplace and are highly motivated to achieve greater levels. Their confidence gives them the ability to negotiate for favourable job outcomes.
Age
University and college graduates usually have little or no job experience since they are still young and are just out school. Except for those who have graduated with marketable courses like medicine, most graduates are still not in a position to identify what jobs they would want to take and therefore their preferences are not consistent (Kirton, 2009, 14). In most cases, a graduate will take any job that comes his or her way.
During that young age a person’s physical as well s mental capacities can still allow him or her to concentrate extremely well in work except for a few cases. At that age, most young people are still not deeply involved in family and other social problems and therefore they tend to concentrate on their careers.
They strive to move up the ladder. They are even ready to work long hours and they find it easier to cope with added responsibilities in the workplace. Responsibilities motivate them to prove their ability in leadership and management. They are very flexible can easily adapt to new changes at the work place. They are not yet accustomed to doing a task in a particular way.
Even though one might enter a job with great ambitions, age might create frustrations. Most companies appraise employees on the basis of experience and maturity in the job as well as in relations (Kirton, 2009, 14). Since young graduates have no experience and are still considered immature, they have to wait for some time to get promotion. Some jobs are even advertised for some specific older groups with a number of years of experience barring the young graduates from applying for the jobs.
Personal expectations
Personal expectation can highly influence one’s job satisfaction. When one acquires their dream job which may not have been what he or she studied at school, he or she becomes happier in the job and is motivated to put his or her all in every task assigned. If the management style as well as the company culture matches the expectations of the individual, there is employee involvement and autonomy in work positions, the person is likely to achieve job satisfaction (Pocok 2003, 23).
In a workplace, they should be promotional opportunities which are well structured to provide every member of a department with a chance to rise up the ladder. Job satisfaction motivates an individual especially a young employee who is just from college or university to be responsible and maintain the company culture.
If a person’s high expectations are satisfied, he or she becomes more committed to the company (Brown, Hesketh, & Williams 2003, 121). The individual will not be a victim of absenteeism at the workplace. On the other hand, low expectations are likely to lower self-efficacy of an individual and this automatically affects performance at the workplace.
Family support
Family support can help one maintain a positive outlook while still looking for a job or changing jobs or career paths. Social support that one receives from family members has the potential to affect one’s reactions to issues affecting him or her at the workplace. Conversely, lack of family support may reduce the efforts you can give to tasks. Workers experience more incivility from their superiors as compared to their coworkers or even their subordinates (Lee & Lim 2011, 95).
These experiences have an influence on job outcomes. Such experiences cause perceptions of unjust treatment and increases depression in the individual. Work-to-family conflict increases the incivility effect thereby reducing the individual’s job performance and outcome. Stronger family support helps an individual overcome the problems in the workplace.
Institutional Factors
Education
Education develops many aspects in an individual and it is often assumed that the higher the educational qualification, the more the knowledge the individual has. Tertiary education is a transition from school to employment as well as job outcomes (Brown, Hesketh, & Williams 2003, 112).
High levels of educational qualification give one a better occupational status. Higher professional qualification enhances one’s knowledge and efficiency in the job. Such a person is better placed to solve issues related to the job as well as other problems that usually arise in the workplace.
The employers are usually keen to critically analyse the educational life of an individual including participation in extra-curricular activities while still in school. Extra-curricular activity is often seen by some employers as a predictor of productivity of the individual (Wang 2008, 23).
They also pay special attention to non-market activities of the potential employee. One’s participation in extra-curricular activities is an indication of responsibility, citizenship as well as good communication skills which are likely to add value to the organisation (Wang 2008, 23).
On one hand, extra-curricular activities may show little professional commitment resulting in future low productivity. Depending on educational level and qualification as well as participation in extra-curricular activities, one is likely to begin his or her career as a manager rather than an office employee. The level of professional qualification also determines the remunerations and other benefits that one receives from his or her job.
Skills
It is important that one possess the right skills and experience to perform the job. This would make the job challenging and interesting for the individual. An individual with task-relevant skills which includes general mental ability as well as job specific knowledge brings value to the organization and achieves positive job outcomes (Brown, Hesketh, & Williams 2003, 112).
General skills and job-related skills enhance one’s effectiveness in the workplace which in turn influences the person’s dedication in the job. Education enables one to acquire self-management and communication skills, ability to manage people and tasks as well as skills to mobilize change and innovation in the workplace (Wang 2008, 24).
These skills are rather generic and can not be entirely acquired through subject matter, thus they are not associated with the grades that one achieved in the institutions of higher learning. Interpersonal skills are also valuable in workplaces as most jobs require teamwork as well as collaborations. An individual who possess high interpersonal and intrapersonal skills is likely to relate well with colleagues and the managers. Such a person can do well in leadership roles, attain job easily and rise faster to managerial positions.
The internships that one attends while still in college or university introduce the person to real work environment and provide experience that is very essential for future work. One acquires real job skills and also helps develop other important skills. Voluntary work experiences also help one acquire job-related skills such as leadership and also diversify his or her fields of work. Social skills are important in workplace.
One’s personality influences the leadership qualities that one presents in a workplace which in turn impacts on the success of the job performance. In a workplace, people communicate and relate and therefore the kind of relationship that one forms with coworkers, subordinates and managers has an influence on the job outcome.
Pre-determinants of labour market
An individual’s ability affects labour market outcomes. However, there are other non-wage benefits that promote an individual’s ability to influence labour market outcomes. Employers are usually mandated by labour market regulations to provide their employees with specific forms of non-wage benefits (Helppie & Macis 2009, 1).
The benefits are normally financed by the employer or may be financed by both the employer and the employee and are administered at the organizational level. Some of these benefits include health insurance, vacation bonus pay as well as sick leave. There could also be compensation for work-related transportation costs among many more. These benefits reduce an individual’s personal expenditure including job related spending.
They are likely to decrease an individual’s financial and psychological problems thereby giving the individual the opportunity to commit himself or herself to the organisation. Compensations and benefits improve one’s confidence and motivate him or her to be more responsible and committed to the organisation. The individual comes to understand that the organisation acknowledges their worth and therefore puts his all in task performances.
On the other hand, minimum wage settings also give an individual the basis for negotiating salaries and wages. However, in jobs or in organizations where salaries and wages are preset by the board, one can not negotiate any salary and therefore has to go with that of the board. Pre-determined salaries could help eliminate salary discriminations in an organisation.
This might be very beneficial to individuals who are just from colleges and universities as they still have little information about the company. It makes an individual develop a perception of equal treatment in the workplace. Besides, the individual develops confidence in the organisation and its management. Consequently, this determines an individual’s good relation with others in the workplace as well job performance.
Conclusion
An individual’s job outcome is influenced by several factors which include both personal and institutional factors. Gender segregation may limit another gender from getting jobs or working in particular fields or organizations. In some cases, other gender earns more than the other and this also extends to races and ethnic groups where the dominant race or ethnic group earns more than the minority group. Ethnicity and racism creates discrimination and negative stereotyping.
It lowers confidence and self-esteem of minority employees which consequently affects their job performance. One’s economic class also determines his or her level of confidence in tasks and in interactions. Family support on the other hand can help an individual adapt into the job and overcome job-related problems.
Institutional factors also play a part in job outcomes. Education gives the necessary knowledge and qualification for performing the job as well as efficiency in the job and can also determine the level in the job ladder that one starts at. Skills supplement one’s ability to perform tasks. Task-relevant skills add value to the organisation and influences job outcomes. Pre-determinant factors also work to motivate individuals to be more committed to the organisation.
These factors either inhibit or support job outcomes therefore it is important that an individual is able to adapt into the system or manipulate the system to make it suitable for him or her. One has to know how to relate to everyone in the workplace.
Reference List
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