ABSTRACT

In recent years, cases of irregular payment of salaries and wages to workers in government ministries and parastatals have become a house hold issue. Hardly would nay month pass with out the media report about the difficulties being faced by workers as a result of delayed payment of their remuneration in the form of salaries, wage gratuity or pensions. At one time it will be in the federal ministry at other time it may be in the state ministries on the local government.

The strategic position assumed to be occupied by financial rewards in the relationship between the workers and their organization aroused the curiosity of the researcher to such extent that he decide to find out the effect of delayed payment of salaries and wage on the performance of employees, using the federal ministry of agriculture and natural resources, Enugu branch as a case study.

In carrying out the study, survey methodology was used in gathering data, after gathering and analyzing the data, it was discovered that factors such as financial impropriety, ghost workers syndrome and diversion of funds were instrumental to government decision to carryout series of identification and screening exercises and change in there accounting system which combined to cause delays in the payment of  workers salaries and wages which I turn resulted in the decrease in the volume of work performed.

Based on these findings, recommendations were made on how to solve the lingering problem. They include. Training the employees especially those in account and personnel department on the modern methods and technique of carrying out their assignment, computerization of the operation at least the above two departments, effort to retain the civil service glamour and a special recurrent expenditure account for the ministries. It is hope that when these recommendations are applied, the problem of delayed payment of salaries and wages will become a thing of the past.

 CHAPTER ONE

1.1            BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Every business is of primarily profit oriented, which I see as the objective which it set out achieves. The objective are stated or defined in their policy or mission statement.

In order to achieve the set goal, management ensures that all operations, activities of the organization conform to the established guides. The attitude of the employee leads to the achievement of the organization and the organization should ensure that employees are not created bad so that their attitude could not affect their performance.

Most of the things which affects the performance of the employee is, if there is any delay in payment f their salaries and wages.

What is performance? According to the oxford advance learner’s dictionary of current English (Homby, 1995: 860).

Performance means an action or achievement considered in relation to how useful it is in relation to workers performance refers to the action of the employees as they relate to the achievement of the set objective of the ministry. Employee performance occupies a central position in determine the success or failure of any organization.

This could be the reason why Mba, (1992:25), state that of all the resource of any organization, human resources remain the pivot on which other resource revolve and its performance determined the effectiveness and efficiency of the organization.

In the light of the above it is penitent to ask one vital question. The question remains, what is responsible for employee how performance? To answer question correctly, one has to look into the factor affecting performance e of worker and see it any of them is present in this ministry, one of the known factory militating against workers performance is poor conditions of services.

Chief among these condition is the method of payment and this is one are in which federal ministry of agriculture and natural resources has not being doing well. Reports from the workers themselves indicate that there has been irregular payment of salaries and wages and other fringe benefit to workers in recent times. In the course of this study, we attempt to find out the effect of delayed payment of wages and salaries on employee performance using Enugu branch of federal ministry of agriculture and natural resource as a case study.

1.2            STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

For about two years now, employees of federal ministry of agriculture and natural resources Enugu branch have been facing difficulties in receiving their salaries and wages as at when due. Complaints shown that since the inception of the present democratic government, payment of salaries and other Fringe benefits to workers in this ministry has been irregular. Sometimes it is delayed up to three months and at other times at say up to five months before it is paid this situation has lingered to the extent that the workers have lost hope of ever receiving their salaries at the end of every month, as was the case some years age.

          In recent time, changes in the attitude of employees of this ministry have become noticeable. These changes include; going to work later, truancy in the office, quarrelling among workers themselves and frequent absence from duty without leave. All these could be regarded as the result of lack of motivation. The question now is, does delayed payment of workers salaries and wages affect. Their performance? If it does, what should be done to remedy the situation before it gets out of hand?

1.3            OBJECTIVE OF STUDY

The objective of this study includes the following:

·        To find out why payment of salaries and wages are delayed in the federal ministry of agriculture and natural resource Enugu Branch.

·        To determine if this delay has affected the performance of employee in this ministries

·        To ascertain feelings of the workers

·        To suggest solution to the problem.

1.4            THE SIGNIFICANT OF THY STUDY

The aim of this research is to look into the cause of delay in the payment of salaries and wages of the employee with a view to proffering a lasting solution to the problem.

It hoped that when these solutions have been applied and the situation brought under control, it would have brought to an end, the suffering and agony which has lingered in the lives of workers of this establishment and thereby giving them a sense of belonging which will in turn improves their performance and help organization to achieve the objectives for which it was established it will also serve as a reference, which shall aid parishioners of management in solving similar problem in future.

1.5            THE RESEARCH QUESTION

The following research question formed the basis for the questionnaire and interview that will be used for data collection.

·        What are the causes of irregular payment of workers salaries in the federal ministry of agriculture and natural resources Enugu branch?

·        What is the effect of delayed payment on the performance of workers in the ministry?

·        How do the employees feel about the situation?

·        What should be done to bring the situation to an end?

1.6            THE SCOPE OF THE STUDY

Since this study seeks to find out the causes of delay in the payment of work salaries and wages and the effect which the situation may have on the performance.

Therefore, the scope of this study is limited to the federal ministry of agriculture and natural resources Enugu branch (FMANR).

All categories of workers are involved and the entire department covered.

1.7            LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

          There is some factor, which have contributed in making this research work not to be as thorough and comprehensive as it ought to be.

The include the following.

·        Time construing: the time within which this research was expected to be completed was very short compared to the enormous work required to be done in the course of these writing. This was further compounded by the fact that the researcher needed to fulfill other academic obligations necessary for the award of in higher national diploma in business administration and management.

·        Finance; limited finance resource also constitute a significant factor in hindering the success of this research. A lot of money was required for transportation to the organization being studied and other resource centers where relevant materials and information were to be collected.

·        Lack of cooperation: the unwillingness of officers of the ministry to answer contain question limited the information available to the researcher. Some of them consider some information to be government secret, which should not be given out, which some claimed they have no authority to speak on the matter.

·        Scope of the study: the research was limited to the federal ministry of agriculture Enugu branch. This made it that only the information gathered forms this branch was considered.

1.8            DEFINITIONS OF TERMS

·        Performance – this refers to action considered in relation to how successful it is.

·        FEANR: this an abbreviated forms for federal ministry of agriculture and national resources.

·        Salary: this means a fixed regular payment made to employees of an organization usually on monthly basis

·        Wages: a regular, usually weekly payment made or received for work or service.

·        Inefficiency: this refers to the gap between the actual performance and expected performance.

FERERENCES

Anderson, David J, (1997)                                   African History A.D. 1000 – 18000. London and basing stoke : Macmillan Education limited.

Mba, Agwu (1992)                                               Introduction to management principles, Enugu: united press limited

Obasanjo (2001)                                                  Budget Broadcast, Lagos Punch newspapers Ltd.

Hornby, A.S. (1995)                                            Oxford advance learners dictionary, fifth edition New York : Oxford University press

Ogbozor, Christ . C (1999)                                  Organizational behavior and the practices of management. Enugu Linco press Nigeria Limited

Vroom, H 91964)                                                 work and motivation. New York. John wily and Sons Inc.