Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
in this unit, such as commission and bonuses, have a
part to play in this motivation, but managers must use
other methods to generate and maintain high levels
of motivation, for example team building, job rotation
and social activities outside of work time.
Weblink
Check out this website for the current
rates for the National Minimum Wage.
www.hmrc.gov.uk
Theorists such as Maslow and Herzberg are often
quoted for their work on motivation in the workplace.
Maslow's hierarchy of needs states that everybody
has needs at different levels, starting with the most
basic physiological needs like air and water, through
the need for companionship, secruity and love,
right up to self-actualisation (self-fulfi lment). People
meet these different needs through their work and
social life. Herzberg is best known for his 'hygiene'
and motivational factors theory, through which he
attempted to bring more humanity and caring into the
workplace. His research showed that people will strive
to achieve 'hygiene' needs - salary, work conditions,
relationship with supervisor, status, security, etc. -
because they are unhappy without them, but once
satisfi ed the effect soon wears off. Then, as now,
poorly-managed organisations fail to understand that
staff are not motivated by addressing their 'hygiene'
needs, but are only truly motivated by enabling them
to satisfy what Herzberg identifi ed as real motivators,
such as personal growth, achievement, recognition,
advancement and personal development.
Performance-related pay
This incentive offers staff pay increases linked to their
performance. For example, travel agency staff may be
given sales targets to meet over a given time period,
while a tour operator's call centre agents may be
expected to answer and deal with a set number of
calls every hour. It is common for staff who achieve or
exceed their targets to be rewarded with a salary or
wage rise as their sales performance increases.
Incentive schemes
Paying commission, offering bonuses and discounts on
products are common ways that employers 'incentivise'
their staff. Commission payments are usually made
on top of basic salary although some sales jobs are
'commission only' with no basic pay at all. Bonuses are
paid at certain times of the year or in appreciation of the
hard work and effort of staff in relation to a particular
campaign or project, e.g. the successful staging of a
major event.
Incentives
Pension schemes
In this section we investigate the many incentives
available to staff working in the travel and tourism
sector, including performance-related pay, perks and
opportunities for promotion, all of which are designed
to motivate staff in the workplace.
A pension is a 'pot' of money that can be drawn on
in later life when somebody has retired from work.
The offer of a pension from an organisation is a
valuable incentive to staff, since they will benefi t from
extra income over and above the state retirement
pension. Pensions are normally 'contributory', when
both employees and employers pay into the pension
during a person's working life. There has been a steady
growth in recent years in private pensions, while the
number of fi nal salary schemes, where the employee
gets a guaranteed percentage of their fi nal salary in
retirement, is falling.
Remuneration
All members of staff expect a fair day's pay for a fair
day's work. Payments to staff are governed by the
National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates. The main (adult)
rate applying to workers aged 22 and over is currently
£5.80/hour (July 2010). The current development
rate applying to 18 to 21-year olds is £4.83/hour. The
young workers' rate for all workers under the age of 18
is currently £3.57/hour.
