External job satisfaction factors improving the overall job satisfaction of selected five-star hotel employees

Abstract

One of the 2011 South African National Tourism Sector Strategy objectives is to "provide excellent people development and decent work within the tourism sector". The hospitality industry is, however, not regarded as a provider of decent work and a close link exists between decent work and job satisfaction. External job satisfaction can be defined as satisfaction relating to the work environment of employees. The purpose of this study was to identify the external job satisfaction factors which contribute to overall job satisfaction of employees in selected five-star hotels. The instrument used to gather the quantitative data was a newly developed index based on the literature review conducted. The empirical study was conducted among 124 employees of four five-star hotels in the Western Cape. All three factors identified (supervision, work environment and work itself) were found to be significantly and positively correlated with overall job satisfaction in five-star hotels in the Western Cape.