Rewards and teachers’ job satisfaction in selected government aided secondary schools in Kumi district, Uganda

Abstract

This research was about rewards and teachers’ job satisfaction in selected government aided secondary schools in Kumi District, Uganda. The purpose of the study was to find out how rewards influence teachers’ job satisfaction in the selected government aided secondary schools in Kumi District, Uganda. The researcher used a cross-section survey design, both qualitative and quantitative research methods. A total of 195 respondents were used: 07 headteachers, 07 chairpersons PTA, 01 DEO and 180 teachers. Purposive sampling and simple random sampling techniques were used for selecting respondents. Self-administered questionnaires and interviews were used as data collection instruments. Study findings showed that teachers are rewarded in different ways both monetary and non-monetary but generally, most of them are rewarded through salary payment, given meals, through praise for good work done and some given PTA allowances. Teachers are not rewarded through professional growth and development and few of them had benefited from promotions. Study findings further showed that teachers’ levels of intrinsic satisfaction with their job were high due to love and passion for their profession. Most of them however, especially of arts subjects were not extrinsically satisfied due to disparities in payment of salaries compared to teachers of science subjects. It was concluded that salary payment and allowances enhance teachers’ job satisfaction. Basing on the above findings, it is recommended that the government needs to ensure that salaries of arts subject teachers are enhanced to the tune of their science counterparts, to foster equal pay for equal work. It was also recommended that all schools should have staff quarters to save teachers from trekking long journeys to school.