Problem Statement:

Workplace injuries are a constant concern in work environments where the majority of employees perform manual labor. It is currently unknown whether the monetary value of a company workmen’s compensation insurance policy impacts the performance of employees.

Purpose Statement:

The purpose of this quantitative study is to determine if the workplace performance of employees performing manual labor is correlated with the monetary value of a company’s workmen’s compensation insurance policy.

Research Questions: 

RQ1: Is the workplace performance of manual labor-based employees correlated with the amount of money a company’s workmen’s compensation policy will pay out if the employee becomes injured?

RQ2: Is the number of workplace injuries correlated with the monetary value of a company’s workmen’s compensation insurance policy?

Methodology & Justification:

The current study chose a quantitative research methodology to examine whether there is a correlation between the monetary value of a company’s workman’s compensation and the performance of employees who perform manual labor. A quantitative methodology was chosen for the study because both research questions seek to determine if there is a statistical relationship between quantitative variables, including the maximum monetary value of a company’s workman’s compensation policy and the number of workplace injuries. Workplace performance will also be evaluated quantitatively by giving workplace managers a Likest-type survey using a 1-5 scale to evaluate different aspects of employee performance in the workplace. Consequently, a quantitative approach is best suited for the current study, as the study will utilize student t-tests to determine if there is a relationship between the independent variables (workman’s compensation policy amount, number of workplace injuries) and dependent variable (employee workplace performance) in the study (Bloomfield & Fischer, 2019). The researcher did not choose a qualitative methodology because qualitative methodologies generally do not examine quantitative variables, but instead allow the researcher to ask study participants questions surrounding their lived experiences and perspectives of a phenomenon in question (Creswell & Creswell, 2017). The current study is not concerned with the employees rating of their own performance or the opinions of employees about workman’s compensation, making a qualitative methodology and mixed methodology inappropriate for the study. In the proposed study, the researcher seeks to understand if there is a statistical relationship or correlation between the maximum monetary amount of a company’s workman’s compensation policy and employee performance. Studies that seek to find statistical relationships are well suited for quantitative-based methodologies (Bloomfield & Fischer, 2019). For these reasons, the researcher chose a quantitative methodology to examine the research questions.

Bloomfield, J., & Fisher, M. J. (2019). Quantitative research design.  Journal of the Australasian Rehabilitation Nurses Association,  22(2), 27-30.

Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2017). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage.

Feasibility:

A feasible study is one in which the research can readily access the data required for analysis and one in which there are suitable methods for analysis of the data in question. In the current study, company managers will rate employee performance, as well as give the researcher data regarding the company’s workman’s compensation policy and number of workplace injuries. Companies are required to have this information readily on hand for safety inspectors, meaning that the data is readily available for the researcher provided the managers give the research informed consent to conduct the study.