Growing Work Pressure in the Construction Industry
Construction companies operate under strict deadlines, complex coordination, and continuous project demands. These conditions make human resource management a strategic priority. When employees feel overworked or unable to manage their personal lives, job satisfaction declines, increasing absenteeism, burnout, and staff turnover.
The study focuses on operational employees at PT XYZ in Bandung, where internal company data showed a turnover rate of about 13.5 percent in 2025. This exceeded the commonly accepted healthy turnover threshold of 10 percent per year, signaling organizational challenges tied to employee satisfaction and working conditions.
Interviews revealed that employees often juggle administrative duties and field supervision simultaneously. After completing office work, many still visit project sites at night to monitor progress and logistics. Weekly working hours reach 54–58 hours excluding overtime, with an additional 12–15 overtime hours during project deadlines. Such conditions reduce personal time and strain family life, contributing to work–life imbalance.
How the Study Was Conducted
The researchers used a quantitative descriptive and associative approach to examine the relationship between workload, work–life balance, and job satisfaction.
Data came from:
- Surveys completed by 34 permanent operational employees
- In-depth interviews
- Company documentation
The analysis relied on multiple linear regression using statistical software to determine whether workload and work–life balance influenced job satisfaction individually and together.
This method allowed the researchers to identify patterns in employee perceptions while measuring the strength of each factor’s influence on satisfaction levels.
Key Findings
The study found clear and statistically significant relationships between the examined variables:
- Workload has a positive and significant effect on job satisfaction when tasks are distributed proportionally and align with employee capacity.
- Work–life balance also significantly increases job satisfaction, especially when employees have sufficient time for family and personal life.
- Together, workload and work–life balance explain 85.3 percent of the variation in job satisfaction levels among employees.
- Regression results show that improvements in either factor lead to measurable increases in satisfaction.
In practical terms, this means most of what determines whether employees feel satisfied at work depends on how fairly tasks are allocated and whether they can maintain a healthy personal life.
Why These Results Matter
The research highlights a broader issue facing modern workplaces: performance targets alone cannot sustain organizational success without considering employee wellbeing.
In labor-intensive industries like construction, poorly managed workloads can lead to fatigue, reduced morale, and high turnover. Conversely, balanced workloads and supportive work policies foster motivation, loyalty, and productivity.
According to the authors from Jenderal Achmad Yani University, organizations should regularly evaluate the psychological, mental, and time demands placed on workers. They recommend clearer role definitions, fair compensation systems, flexible scheduling policies, and supportive leadership practices to improve job satisfaction.
This insight is particularly relevant for companies operating in fast-growing infrastructure sectors, where project timelines often expand faster than workforce capacity.
Implications for Businesses and Policymakers
For companies, the study suggests that human resource strategies must go beyond recruitment and training. Task allocation, scheduling flexibility, and realistic project planning should be integrated into performance management systems.
For policymakers, the findings reinforce the importance of monitoring working hours and labor conditions, especially in sectors prone to excessive overtime. Effective labor protections and organizational guidelines can help maintain sustainable productivity without sacrificing worker wellbeing.
For academic and management communities, the study supports the person–environment fit theory, which argues that job satisfaction increases when work demands align with individual abilities and personal circumstances.
As Shandy Aghnia Rachman of Jenderal Achmad Yani University explains, employee satisfaction improves when “task management is proportional and workers are able to maintain a healthy balance between professional and personal responsibilities.” This insight underscores the strategic role of work design in organizational success.
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