Title:
EMPLOYEE PARTICIPATION IN DECISION-MAKING: A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON PERCEPTION OF EMPLOYEES AND EMPLOYERS IN NEPALESE ENTERPRISES

Authors:
Rohit Kumar Shrestha, PhD, Arjun Kumar Dahal, and Gyanu Acharya ,Nepal

Abstract:
There is much debate as to whether employees should be participated or not in the decision-making process. This study examined the status of employee participation in decision-making using Government-Owned Enterprises namely Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), a corporate office located in Kathmandu, and privately run industry, Bira Furniture within Patan Industrial Estate located in Lalitpur, Nepal, as a case study. The study employed qualitative research for empirical investigation. Interviews, Focus Group Discussions (FGD), and observation were used for primary data collection. A purposive sampling method was applied. The study used thematic analysis of data. Lower-level employees have also adequate rights in their workplace decision-making at the head office of NEA. However, high-level decision-making power rest in top-level management. Most of the decisions are made based on rules, by-laws, and procedures. By nature, almost all functions are performed based on teamwork. Even though the employer/manager of the Bira Factory argues that workers have sufficient engagement in the workplace decision-making process, the great majority of workers express a lack of such opportunity in the factory. This finding implies that employees or workers in the public sector are more involved in decisionmaking than those in the private sector. The researcher suggests that managers should participate with employees in the decision-making process in the present time of industrial democracy.