Economic Security and Job Satisfaction among Government School Teachers in India: An Exploratory Mixed-Methods Study through the Lens of Human Capital Theory

Abstract

The importance of human capital in government schools, in particular, is much higher since they are directly involved in the formation of the future generation and national productivity. The concept of government teaching in India has been linked with employment security and financial security and as the economic condition has changed in this country, teachers have evolved their perceptions on economic security and job satisfaction due to inflationary pressures, changing pension and increasing expenditure of the households. The study explores the connection between economic security and job satisfaction among government school teachers by only looking at the Human Capital Theory. The study defines the strategic investments of salary proportionality, income sufficiency, saving behaviour, retirement benefits and perceived economic security as investments that help maintain and improve the productive capacity of teachers.

Primary data were generated using a structured questionnaire that received both quantitative answers and qualitative responses from 71 teachers from the government schools. Descriptive statistics, the cross-tabulations and the appropriate data analysis of the categorical data were used in addition to the thematic analysis of the open-ended answers. The results suggest that although most teachers believe that their careers are economically secure, they still worry about being paid fairly, saving money, inflation, and retirement planning affects job satisfaction. Around 81.7% of the respondents felt that government jobs give them economic security and 60.6% felt that government salaries are commensurate with their work. Over half of the respondents said they had enough income to afford a "fair" level of living, but qualitative data showed that they were concerned about high living costs and financial insecurity in the future.

The study builds upon Human Capital Theory by suggesting that investment in teacher finances should be considered as a national investment for educational productivity, not as a "recurring cost of the public sector. The results have implications for educational administrators and policymakers interested in improving teacher welfare, organizational commitment, and educational quality by creating or evaluating evidence-based compensation and retirement policies.