What Is the Connection between Attitudes and Job Satisfaction?

There is a certain link between the attitudes and job satisfaction of employees at an organization. Attitudes, or the way that employees feel about job tasks, working conditions, and compensation, all play into the job satisfaction that infiltrates a company. Typically, the more positive attitudes surrounding an employer are, the greater job satisfaction among employees will be, and this may lead to higher work productivity. An employer's personnel or human resources division can perform studies to assess both of these factors and may also implement programs to improve sentiment.

Culture can impact employees' attitudes and job satisfaction. For instance, if an individual belongs to a culture where certain religious days are recognized, the way that an employer treats those days could influence that employee's job satisfaction. If the company honors the religious day as a holiday, it is likely to resonate well with an individual of that culture. On the other hand, in the event an employer does not honor a certain culture's religious holiday, that individual's attitude could be affected in a negative way, which in turn could lead to lower job satisfaction.

Compensation, including employees' take-home pay and benefits, certainly shape how employees feel about their jobs. Employers who create environments where employees are compensated fairly and where there are opportunities for growth are likely to create positive sentiment surrounding employees. If, however, there are negative factors influencing compensation, such as higher health care costs that reduce employees' net incomes, attitudes and job satisfaction could suffer. Attitudes toward an employer are often influenced by relationships with coworkers as well. If there is a strong sense of a team environment, for instance, this could lead to favorable attitudes at a job, while hostile relationships can damage the work environment.

Signs that improvements to employees' attitudes and job satisfaction need to be made could be identified in behavior patterns. For instance, high absenteeism could be a result of stress and sickness that are produced from low job satisfaction. Concerns about negative attitudes and low job satisfaction could be addressed by distributing surveys to employees to learn what may be driving the negative sentiment. Based on employee responses, an employer can implement changes that are likely to produce beneficial results. Higher work satisfaction could reduce absentee instances, which in turn should lead to greater production from employees.