JOB STRESS AND EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE IN A NIGERIAN BEVERAGE MANUFACTURING FIRM: EVIDENCE FROM SEVEN-UP BOTTLING COMPANY LTD., EDO STATE

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between job stress and employee performance in Seven-Up Bottling Company Ltd, Edo State, Nigeria, with performance operationalized as employees' quality of work and efficiency. The study was motivated by growing concern that excessive workplace stress may reduce employees' ability to sustain quality, efficiency and productivity in manufacturing organizations. Anchored on the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) Theory, the study adopted a descriptive survey design. A census sample of 96 employees of the firm's Benin City operation completed a structured questionnaire; data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Spearman's rho correlation in SPSS. Results showed that job stress had a statistically significant negative relationship with employees' quality of work (rs = -.942, p < .01) and with employees' efficiency (rs = -.909, p < .01). Both null hypotheses were therefore rejected. The findings suggest that unmanaged job stress arising from workload, role pressure, time pressure and inadequate organisational support substantially weakens employees' concentration, accuracy and productive capacity in manufacturing settings. The study recommends that management improve workload distribution, strengthen supervisory support, institute stress-management programmes, improve communication, ensure adequate staffing, and reward employees who take on additional responsibilities. The study contributes context-specific evidence on job stress and performance from a Nigerian manufacturing setting, a context underrepresented in the extant literature.