Downsizing And Employee Turnover in Public Business in Anambra State, Nigeria

The study aimed at investigating the effect of downsizing on employee turnover in public business in Anambra State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study examines the effect of employee attrition, staff redundancy and early retirement on organizational performance of public enterprise in Anambra State, Nigeria. Relevant literatures on downsizing and employee were reviewed under conceptual review, theoretical framework, and empirical review. The research was anchored on institutional theory of downsizing. Survey research design was adopted. The population of the study was 2087. The statistical formula devised by Borg and Gall (1973), was employed to arrive at a sample size of 400. The population used in the analysis was 335. Multiple Regression Analysis (MRA) method was used in testing the hypotheses. The result of the hypotheses shows that attrition had a significant positive effect on employee reward of public business enterprises in Anambra State, Staff redundancy had a significant positive effect on involuntary turnover of public business enterprises in Anambra State and early retirement had a significant positive effect on employee career growth of public business enterprises in Anambra State. The study concluded that downsizing had a positive significant effect on employee turnover in public business in Anambra State, Nigeria. The study recommended that public business enterprises should make sure that incentives programmes are put in place to reduce the rate of employees’ attrition and also have enough manpower to reduce the workload of their employees in order to make them perform their job effectively. Public business enterprises should provide good working and conducive environmental conditions so that employees can enjoy their work and accepts responsibility given to them hence not think of quitting their job. Public business enterprises should enlighten its employees through early retirement programmes about part-time work programmes, transfers to other locations of the same firm and “voluntary severance programmes.