A comparative analysis of productivity rates between piecework and daily rates in construction sites. A case of engineering ministries international Uganda.

Abstract

The study aimed to undertake a comparative analysis of productivity rates between piecework and daily rates in construction sites using a case of Engineering Ministries International Uganda. Specifically, to compare effectiveness of piecework and daily work payment systems on worker productivity; compare the challenges associated with implementing piecework and daily rate payment systems and recommend the best payment system for EMI Uganda balancing productivity, cost efficiency, and worker satisfaction. The study was undertaken while using quantitative research method relying on 90 workers from EMI Uganda. The study used the stratified random sampling from a total population of 85 workers. Questionnaire was employed during data collection, whilst STATA in data analysis. The study findings indicated that there is no significant difference between the workers paid under piece wage and those paid under time wage after majority of the KPI giving a p-value > 0.05. It is evident that workers' satisfaction, training and education, safety committees, risk assessments, incident reporting, hazard identification, safety equipment availability, supervision, safety leadership effectiveness, workers' use of personal protective equipment (PPE), sleep quality, and PPE maintenance rate are critical factors influencing labor health, safety, and wellbeing. Key finding of the study is that daily-wage workers are at a disadvantage to those who are paid on piece wage rate. A number of recommendations have been made to deal with these problems. These suggestions include enhancing work-life balance, increasing compensation and benefits, establishing safety committees, providing thorough training programs, conducting regular risk assessments, improving incident reporting systems, promoting hazard identification, ensuring the availability and proper use of safety equipment, improving supervisory training, providing access to thorough workers' compensation, creating health education programs, and investing in safety technology.