Employment relations, service quality and professionalism within the Nigerian public service

Abstract

This paper was written with the following in mind: (1) to determine the effect of employee wellness on public servants’ professionalism, and (2) to establish the relationship between trade union activities and employee professionalism. Within organisations, employment relations are established to facilitate an interactive working relationship between an employer and an employee as well as determine how labour and social security law provisions addressed to employees are applied. We reviewed pertinent literature that guides employment relations and adopted the mixed methods to enable a rigorous study that will offer profound insight into the employment relations climate in Nigeria and how it affects professionalism. Subjects were drawn from the database of a public funded training provider, whichcaters exclusively for senior public servants. The data are presented in a graphical and narrative form owing to our use of themes in analysing the focus group interviews. Some interesting and at the same time confusing revelations emerge from this study. The distinct difference in the responses holds implications for research and practice. A future study that can clarify this confusion may start by identifying champions (trade unionists, managers at the coalface with unions and other employers) and then engaging them through in-depth interviews to understand the real conditions which public servants are exposed. On a practical side, as confusing as the responses seem, they provide a serious opportunity for enhanced studies on Nigeria’s public service constitution. We make this call against the backdrop of what some social scientists have termed intense structural decay in the Nigerian public service.