Impact Measurement of Numerical Flexibility on Psychological Contract of Oil Workers: The Nigerian Experience

The paper is an exploratory study that focuses on the implications of the numerical flexibility of employees on their psychological contracts among selected multinational oil companies in Nigeria. The Nigerian and international media have recently feature reports of strikes and industrial unrest in the oil sector as well as the conflict between the multinational oil corporations and the inhabitants of the environment where the businesses operate. The incessant conflicts and continuous agitations of labour occasioned mainly by job insecurity, lack of motivation, discriminatory remuneration, among others informs this study. The methodology adopted was qualitative with three hundred and forty-two questionnaires collected along with fifty-eight interview conducted. A subjective philosophy essentially drove the study with an epistemological undertone embedded with social constructionism. The NVivo software was used to analyse the collected data, and the result shows among others that the management of the multinational oil organisations has actively segmented the labour market into the core and the peripheral groups. Those in the core are more satisfied with their jobs, better motivated and enjoy good working relations with the management; whereas, the reverse is the case for the peripheral workers.