1.2. QWL and job-related outcomes
The QWL concept was introduced into the work place in the late
1950s. Up until the mid 1970s, the focus was on work design and
improving work. However, beginning in the 1980s QWL has come to
include other features that affect employees' job satisfaction and
productivity for example, reward systems, physicalwork environment,
employee involvement, rights and esteem needs (Cummings and
Worley, 2005). As defined by Walker (1992), QWL involves promoting
a work environment conducive to the satisfaction of employees' needs.
Specifically, Walker (1992) identified teamwork and a sense of ownership,
the results of managers' efforts in fulfilling the employees' needs as
the essential factors for high productivity and performance. He
explained that teamwork ensures that skills, ideas, and energies are
collaborative; while a sense of ownership motivates employees to
perform tasks to the best of their ability and to remain with
organizations. Cascio (1998) argued that employees who work in
organizations where QWL exists will like their organizations and feel
that their work fulfills their needs. QWL, according to Cascio (1998),
involves the opportunity to make decisions about their jobs and the
design of their workplaces.