COMPENSATION MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE OF CIVIL SERVANTS IN ONDO STATE, NIGERIA

One of the challenges facing the Nigerian Civil Service today is the failure of both the Federal and State governments to adequately compensate their workforce. This has inevitably affected the overall performance of employees and has, over the years, made performance very low among civil servants. Based on the aforementioned arguments, this study investigated compensation management on employee performance in the Ondo State Civil Service. It specifically examined how regular salaries, irregular appointments & promotions, and poor incentives influence employees' performance in the Ondo State Civil Service. The study utilised a descriptive research design where a questionnaire was used in gathering responses from one hundred and fifty (150) level 01-13 employees from a population of one thousand one hundred and fifty- eight (1,158) staff of seven (7) MDAs in Ondo State. The findings of the study indicated that the correlation coefficients between employee performance and prompt payment of salaries, rewards, and incentives were significantly positive. Findings revealed that regular salary affected employees’ performance; additionally, irregular appointment and promotions significantly affected employees’ performance, and poor incentive has positive effect on employees’ performance in the Ondo State Civil Service, Nigeria. The study concluded that effective compensation management will significantly contribute to improved employee performance in the Ondo State Civil Service. However, utilising strong compensation strategies to enhance employee motivation and overall service quality within the civil service will lead to improved job satisfaction and effective service delivery. Keywords: Compensation Management, Employees’ Performance, Irregular Appointments and Promotions, Poor Incentives and Regular Salary