Improving the measurement quality of work in developing countries: the Sri Lankan tea plantation sector

Abstract

Research indicates heightened interest in the concept of the quality of work in different parts of the world. In the last two decades, public policy and academic attention have increasingly focused on different aspects of employment quality beyond employment satisfaction and monetary reward. The overarching objectives are not only to encompass ‘full employment’ but also to promote ‘quality’ and ‘productivity’ at work. Quality of work is regarded as an effect that job characteristics have on the well-being of workers, which is also measured as an incentive for the improvement of working conditions, development of workers’ skills and abilities, and productivity of firms. Moreover, quality jobs are considered as fundamental assets in strengthening economic competitiveness within the global context and attaining increased employment rates. This study aims to investigate the applicability of the European Union’s quality of work concept as a universal measure to assess quality of work in developing economies. Another institutional initiative which has contributed to the analysis of employment quality is the International Labour Organisation’s Decent Work concept. Decent Work is considered as an aspirational statement providing a policy framework that facilitates a universalistic approach to the world of work. It comprises a number of indicators in assessing quality of work that correspond to four strategic pillars of the decent work agenda. The chosen research context for the study is the plantation sector in Sri Lanka. This study seeks to find the specificity, relevance, and applicability of quality of work dimensions and indicators as benchmarks to empirically verify work quality within the research context. Accordingly, field research was conducted using case study methodology covering four major tea estates in Sri Lanka. Field data was gathered through structured and semi-structured interviews with participants from each research site involving senior managers, middle managers and tea workers. In addition, secondary documents relevant to the study were obtained from research sites. Subsequently, a qualitative thematic analysis was conducted on interpretive data to answer the primary research question and supplementary questions. Most of the EU’s quality of work attributes were found to be relevant and meaningful to the research context, thereby facilitating an effective assessment. However, some limitations emerged, where quality measures did not explicitly address fundamental work areas of the plantation sector. A significant correspondence between work practices in the research context and decent work indicators was identified. This enabled conclusions about levels of decent work, including deficits specific to the tea plantation settings. This study aims to contribute to an emerging scholarship about the applicability of the EU's quality of work and Decent work in developing countries. It further aims to illustrate how certain dimensions and measuring indicators might be adapted to specific research contexts in order to assess quality of work more effectively. This study will make an intellectual contribution to the body of knowledge providig recommendations for future research.

Date of Award	2024
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Western Sydney University
Supervisor	George Lafferty (Supervisor)