PUBLIC RELATIONS STRATEGIES, INDUSTRIAL CONFLICTS AND WORKERS’ PRODUCTIVITY IN PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN SOUTH-WEST, NIGERIA

Abstract

Productivity in the workplace is a pathway through which many nations have become great. But for productivity to translate into the desired goal of greatness, it has to be harnessed in every sector of socio-economic life of a country especially in the tertiary education sector. However, productivity in Nigerian public universities has been on a downward slope in recent years due to constant industrial conflicts between universities managements and labour unions leading to strike actions. This paper examines how public universities in south-west Nigeria can experience a reduction in internal industrial conflicts and enhance workers’ productivity through the application of some Public Relations strategies. Anchored on Attitude Change Theory, which advocates free flow of persuasive communication, the study adopted a phenomenological approach by engaging in in-depth interviews with spokespersons in four public tertiary institutions in the south-west. Findings show that through a combination of key public relations strategies such as participatory or democratic decision making, free-flow of information, persuasive negotiations and pro-active monitoring of workers to ascertain presumed concerns and grievances can reduce internal industrial conflict and enhance workers’ productivity. The paper concludes that public relations strategies should be used in public universities in south-west, Nigeria to reduce internal industrial conflicts, promote workers job satisfaction and productivity.