Psychological contracts in dairy farming

Abstract

This piece of work is the first research directly into psychological contracts in the dairy production sector. It has been instigated as a result of the employment problems in the dairy industry which have existed since the 1930' s (Reid, 1977). The Agricultural Wages Act, 1936 was aimed directly at improving the working conditions for dairy farm labourers (Tipples et al, 1998). In 1974 it was suggested that shortages of suitable farm labour was restricting the ability of the industry to maintain and increase production (Lloyd 1974: 1). At the Ruakura Dairy farmers Conference in 1997, McLean, Penno and Howse identified availability, recruitment and retention of high quality staff as being the largest single issue facing the dairy industry now and in the foreseeable future. Reid ( 1997) has stated "The New Zealand dairy farm sector is currently having difficulty attracting and retaining the number and type of employees required by dairy farm employers." Factors such as isolation, poor employer and employee relations, time off, wages, and living conditions appear time and time again as problem areas (Reid, 1997, Clark, 1998, Hepburn, 1988, Holmes, 1990). To begin to explore this area, a project to study the content and types of psychological contracts existing in the dairy industry was commissioned.