Title: Relationship between Compensation Disparity Factors and Job Satisfaction among Civil Servants: A Survey of Government Institutions in Nairobi County, Kenya
Abstract: IntroductionCompensation disparity has to do with comparative differences in pay between employees in similar organizations for similar jobs.An employee may feel good about his or her pay in comparison to what those working in other organizations are making.He or she may also believe that the company profits are fairly distributed within the company (Blomme, Van Rheede& Tromp, 2010).However, this same person may be very unhappy about his or her pay relative to several other people in other organizations.Better performances result only in those who perceive their pay as directly related to performance (Shah &Anwar, 2007).Wage differentials have a positive and significant effect on the cost of labor in the public sector.For instance, a Ksh.100 increase in the wage differential leads to an equivalent increase in the cost of labor in the public sector in the long term.This is because the wage differential can be used as a justification for lobbying for higher wages in the public service, as witnessed in recent salary increment calls by teachers, lecturers and doctors (Bozeman &Gaughan, 2011).Despite the relative importance played by wages, the overall job satisfaction that an individual derives from an organization is the most significant determinant of whether the individual quits or stays in the public sector.Incentives and