JOB DISSATISFACTION - VARIABILITY WITH IN DIVIDUAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL-FACTORS - THE CASE OF UNIONIZED PROFESSIONALS IN QUEBEC

Unfulfilled professional expectations concerning the nature of work, c ontrol, participation, development, status, working conditions, employ ee rights, and the managerial style of upper management are the source of a professional malaise that is influenced both by individual facto rs (socio-demographic variables, job characteristics, personality) and by organizational variables (structure, climate, management practices , etc.). The objective of this research is to evaluate the relative im portance of these variables on. this professional malaise, and to meas ure the impact of human resource management practices. Based on the re sponses to a survey conducted among 2497 professionals in 13 unions or associations representing approximately 50 professions, the results e xplain a large portion of the malaise variance (48.6%). They confirm t he importance of the personality variables (professionalism, locus of control, career anchors), and clearly highlight the power of human res ource management practices to attenuate professional dissatisfaction. Consequently, a contingent model for the management of professional ma npower was drawn. It focuses primarily on participation enrichment, co mmunication, and training.