Employee plateauing: some workplace attitudes

Organizations are under pressure to cope with factors such as resource scarcity, increased competition, slow economic growth, increased utilization of technology and an increase in acquisitions and/or mergers. All these can lead to downsizing of the workforce. Many organizations believe downsizing can reduce costs and increase competitiveness. However, flattening structures reduces the number of people needed in organizations and such practices escalate the plateauing phenomenon. The present study explores the relationship between job satisfaction, organizational commitment and the plateauing phenomenon. Non‐plateaued workers seem to have a better relationship with their organization and find coaching new staff more rewarding than plateauing workers. This finding is important because trainers must hold positive attitudes toward the company and this seems more likely when the person is not plateaued. Non‐plateaued employees are also more likely to view the organization as encouraging job performance ‐ another issue of importance to managers of organizations.