Job satisfaction in trade sector: Evidence from the retailers in the largest supermarkets of the Western Balkans

Abstract

© 2015, University in Zagreb. All rights reserved. The paper analyses the job satisfaction in the trade sector as an important component of a comprehensive social and socially responsible employment policy in the Western Balkans. The aim of the research is to use the empirically collected data and conducted tests for defining indicators of job satisfaction of employees in the retail sector in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, and Montenegro with a special emphasis on the relation between EU members and non-EU countries. This paper tests the hypothesis on a statistically significant correlation between indicators of job satisfaction, such as salaries and benefits, working conditions, reward system, career development, job security, collegiality and communication, and the analysed countries of the Western Balkans. The study included 356 retailers from the largest supermarkets in the Western Balkans. The results showed statistically significant correlation between the analysed indicators and countries, and served as the basis for defining the model of employees’ job satisfaction in the Western Balkans retail sector. Practical significance of the research is that it can help managers influence motivation, satisfaction and productivity of their employees, and thus better prepare trading companies in the Western Balkan countries for international competition arena and entry to the European Union market. The results indicate the importance of further research on possible discrepancies in the impact of the observed indicators in the established model of job satisfaction.