Workers' education and the challenges of implementing it among support staff at The University of Zambia

Abstract

The forms of workers’ education offered to support staff at the University of Zambia and the challenges encountered in implementing them were not clearly known. This study, therefore, sought to find out the forms of workers' education that were offered to support staff to enable them acquire latest information about their work, the challenges encountered when implementing them, and their possible solutions.

A case study design was used to assist the researcher gain more insight into workers’ education offered to support staff at the institution. The study used both qualitative and quantitative methods to collect data from the respondents. The respondents comprised senior managers, middle managers, union leaders, Senior Administrative Officers and clerical officers. The senior managers, middle managers, union leaders and Senior Administrative Officers were purposively selected as they were rich information sources. A systematic random sampling was employed to select clerical officers who participated in the study. The sample for this study was 120 of which 82 were clerical officers, four senior managers, ten middle managers, four union leaders and twenty senior administrative officers. Data was collected using both questionnaires and interview guide. Qualitative data was analyzed by categorizing similar themes as they emerged and was presented in qualitative form. With respect to quantitative data,, its analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and was presented using frequency tables.The study findings revealed that job orientation and on-the-job training were the main forms of workers’ education offered to support staff at the University of Zambia. It was further established that job orientation and on-the-job training were forms of updating education which offered no professional qualifications to enable support staff qualify for promotion. The study recommended that both updating and upgrading workers’ education should be offered to support staff at the institution. Further, there is need for the University of Zambia management to formulate a new favourable training policy that will incorporate the concerns and needs of all categories of staff at the University of Zambia. Management should redefine the role of workers’ education in line with the University of Zambia Strategic Plan.