FACTORS AFFECTING LABOR PRODUCTIVITY IN THE

RICE INDUSTRY

INTRODUCTION

The rice industry is a wide range of companies and organizations involved in the design,

development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of rice grains. It is one of the world’s most

important economic sectors in various convenient forms.

Labor productivity growth may be due to either increased efficiency of workers

themselves (without greater use of other inputs), or improvements or increases in inputs used by

workers, such as physical capital, human capital or intermediate inputs. Estimated labor

productivity may also show an increase if the mix of activities in the economy or in an industry

has shifted from activities with low levels of productivity to activities with higher levels, even if

none of the activities have become more productive (Sanders and Thomas, 1991).

Labor productivity estimates can serve to develop and monitor the effects of labor market

policies. For example, high labor productivity is often associated with high levels or particular

types of human capital, indicating priorities for specific education 296 and training policies.

Likewise, trends in productivity estimates can be used to understand the effects of wage

settlements on rates of inflation or to ensure that such settlements will compensate workers for

(part of) realized productivity improvements (Sanders and Thomas, 1991).

Productivity is commonly defined as a ratio between the output volume and the volume

of inputs. Labor productivity is one of the least studied areas within the milling industry.

Productivity and Process improvements achieve high cost savings with high investment. Due to

the fact that profit margins are small on rice projects, cost savings associated with productivity

are crucial to becoming a successful contractor (Sanders and Thomas, 1991).

The building section of the rice industry is mainly concerned with the assembly of

building materials which are supplied by the manufacturing sector and delivered to the site by

the transportation sectors. According to Mbiti (2008), the rice industry employs more than

800,000 people who are required to deliver the constructed facilities to the clients’ on time,

within budget and meeting specified standards of quality. All these may be feasible only if the

predetermined levels of labor productivity are known by stakeholders in advance. The labor

productivity of operatives on site might be affected negatively by a variety of factors which

include; extraneous reasons, shortcomings of management, shortcoming of laborers and

legislation (Heap, 1987). Delays in meeting production activity completion times on site has

caused losses on projects’ profits to the workers; increased costs to the clients and strained the

working relationship between the parties in a project. This has been brought about by among

others, the lack of validated labor productivity rates in the rice industry. The inaccurate

determination of activity duration has in most cases led to the incorrect estimation of contract

periods. Delays in completion of projects in the rice industry are indicators of productivity

problems and it has been a big challenge. Labor productivity therefore has been one of the key

determinants of the contract period of projects and could be improved through effective labor

management.

The main objective of this study is to assign a weight of importance to each of the factors

affecting the productivity and to improve the system of production. The researcher will collect

the present situation on production systems of the rice industry and also the researcher will

determine the key factors in affecting labor productivity in the rice industry in Cavite.

Statement of the Problem

Generally, this study will aim to determine the different key factors affecting labor

productivity in the rice industry of Cavite.

Specifically, this study will aim to answer the following questions:

1. What are the demographic profile of the respondent?

2. What are the factors that have a significant effect on labor productivity of workers?

3. What are the possible recommendations on the areas for labor improvement in the

production?

Importance of the Study

The findings will be valuable in the construction industry as they will prioritize the

factors that are associated with effective labor productivity on site. This will also assist the

planning for the resources to be used in the execution of the work and thereby improving labor

productivity.

Moreover, this study will be helpful to the rice industry and business practitioners in

training, objectives and strategies. It will also serve as a future reference for researchers on the

subject of analysis safety precautions and corporate hardware stores. And importantly, this

research will educate owners and workers in implementing procedures.

Objectives of the Study

Generally, this study will aim to determine the different key factors affecting labor

productivity in the construction industry of Cavite.

Specifically, the study aims to:

1. To determine the demographic profile of the respondent.

2. To determine the factors that have a significant effect on labor productivity of workers;

and

3. To recommend various management strategies and procedures on labor productivity on

labor intensive construction.

Scope and Limitations of the Study

The study will be conducted in different rice manufacturing companies inside the

province of Cavite starting June 2016. The sources of information are only limited to the

researches made by the researchers via internet facilities and reading materials.

The study aims to inform the rice manufacturing companies in Cavite about the factors

affecting labor productivity within the province. Through this research, the rice industry may be

able to know the ways and strategies in improving labor productivity.

Expected Output

The following results are expected to have a better understanding in weight of importance

to each of the factors affecting the labor productivity for several months.

The primary outputs are expected to be considerable for the rice industries in Cavite

which is the place where the study will be done.

And the main expectations of the research in the study is to provide recommendations on

various management strategies and procedures on labor productivity on labor intensive

construction.