Bestuursoriëntasie en die gehalte van werklewe van polisiebeamptes in die Noordwes Provinsie

Abstract

Organisations are managed and operated by people, and therefore, the effectiveness of any organisation, depend on how successfLlly its managers and employees perform their respective tasks. As a result of the high crime rates in South Atiica, the ability of the South &can Police Service to combat crime effectively, is being questioned. Various task orientated efforts are being made to combat crime, but with limited success. Recent internal climate studies of the South Afi-ican Police Service in the North-West province, indicate that a large number of members of the organisation experience low work satisfaction. Because of the role of work satisfaction as a detenninator of quality of work life, the results of the climate studies may indicate that a large portion of the personnel experience low quality of work life: The purpose of this study is to determine the quality of work life of police officers in the province, as well as the role played by the immediate corn m the experience of quality of work ljfe of the suborbinate. This knowledge is necessary to investigate bow q d t y of work We can be increased a a posslilc solution to low effectiveness. Through previous research it was determined that an employee's immediate manager plays a determining role in the employee's quality of work lie and this is confirmed by this study. It was also determined that the management orientation of the manager influences his or her behaviour towards employees. In the modern management literature, a distinction is made between the traditional manager and the modern manager-leader. The main difFerence being that the traditional manager is more task oriented and focuses on doing things right, while the modern manager-leader focuses more on doing the right things right. Literature on the topic of quality of work life leaves the impression that it is an all-inclusive (holistic) concept and the synergistic result of various processes and practices in the work environment. In the empirical part of this study, the information gathered by means of scientific methods, indicated that: the vast majority of commanders on the middle management level have a traditional management orientation. definite differences exist between the quality of work life of police officers with regard to the management orientation of their immediate commander. subordinates serving under a commander with a modern manager-leader orientation, enjoy a higher quality of work life than those subordinates serving under a commander with a traditional management orientation. Based on the h d i s of this study, practical suggestions are made aimed at the h c e m e n t of the quality of work life of police .officers.