The Influence of Workplace Facilities on Lactating Working Mothers’Job Satisfaction and Organisational Commitment: A Case Study of Lactating Working Mothers in Accra, Ghana

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to find out the influence of workplace facilities on lactating working mothers' job satisfaction and their commitment level at work. The subjects for the study were two hundred and sixty lactating working mothers who were working full time from five different organizations in the Accra Metropolis in Ghana with age range of 24-41 years, mean age of 32.2 and a standard deviation of 8.8. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics of mean, standard deviation and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used at 0.05 levels of significance. The findings of the study revealed that, lactating working mothers who get Workplace Facilities are more committed to their work and also more satisfied with their work than those who do not get workplace facilities. This paper, therefore, suggests that employers should provide workplace facilities for lactating working mothers who want to continue the practice of exclusive breastfeeding when they return to work, Since the provision of workplace facilities benefit both the employers, the child and the working mothers. The result of this study is to help policy makers in Ghana to have a second look at the Ghana labour Act (2003) about employment of women especially lactating mothers who want to continue the practice of exclusive breastfeeding with full time work. The findings will also educate employers in Ghana about the benefit of workplace facilities for lactating working mothers and the organization as a whole.

A prática do aleitamento materno entre mulheres em atividade laboral: revisão integrativa

“…Em Gana, estudos sobre trabalho materno e aleitamento materno exclusivo em algumas partes do país investigaram a prática exclusiva do aleitamento materno em mães trabalhadoras do setor formal e descobriram que as mães neste setor são impossibilitadas de praticar o aleitamento materno exclusivo recomendado pela OMS devido a condições prevalentes em seus locais de trabalho. Tais estudos revelaram que a taxa de amamentação exclusiva entre mães trabalhadoras no setor formal varia de 10% a 50%, dependendo do tipo de trabalho (Gladzah, 2013;Danso, 2014) Embora algumas disposições da Lei do Trabalho auxiliassem o aleitamento materno, nota-se que ainda são incipientes para apoiar as mães que desejam continuar o aleitamento materno exclusivo depois da fruição da licença maternidade (Mensah, 2011;Graphiconline, 2015). Este estudo expressou que alguns locais de trabalho em Gana, são ausentes em instalações que apoiem as mães que trabalham para continuar com a amamentação exclusiva após a licença maternidade.…”

Understanding South African mothers’ challenges to adhere to exclusive breastfeeding at the workplace: A qualitative study

“…By law, employers are not obliged to remunerate employees during maternity leave. Due to the short, often unpaid maternity leave in South Africa, numerous mothers are obliged to return to the workplace almost immediately after the birth of their babies, leaving their babies in the care of someone else [ 22 ]. In our study, the working mothers faced the dilemma of wanting and having to provide the best for their babies while having the responsibility of having to return to the workplace and being productive employees at the same time.…”

“…It was evident that breastfeeding in the workplace was experienced as stressful, and these employees developed a negative attitude towards breastfeeding. Female employees facing obstacles in the workplace are more likely to experience psychological problems such as anxiety [ 22 ]. The stress of being conflicted between work and caring for their babies can ultimately influence the working mother’s psychological well-being and influence their work quality [ 23 ].…”

“…Many female employees who breastfeed often stop breastfeeding when returning to the workplace due to a lack of a breastfeeding friendly working environment and the availability of appropriate facilities [26]. This leads to the employees experiencing stress and worry, which affects the employer and their work outcome [ 22 ].…”

Implications of identity in global mission

“…The agreement was built upon the vision of Ghanaian leaders like Agama, William Ofori-Atta, and Gottfried Osei-Mensah, with whom Bendor-Samuel had formed friendships. These Ghanaian statesmen aspired to develop and use the nation’s languages as “a platform for the intellectual, political, economic, and spiritual transformation of their people” (Opoku-Mensah, 2012: 1). They had plans for a truly Ghanaian organization.…”