Effect of Employee Counselling Programs on Employee Performance of Tea Factories in Kericho County, Kenya

Abstract

Abstract In today's dynamic work environment, employee well-being has become a significant concern for organizations aiming to enhance employee productivity and retain talent. Organizations have recently focused on employee development practices through more innovative approaches to achieve that. Employee development practices comprise a range of initiatives designed to improve employee performance, productivity, and job satisfaction while also preparing individuals for future roles and responsibilities within the company. Employee development practices, particularly employee counselling programs, offer confidential support to employees struggling to manage personal or work-related challenges. This paper investigated the effect of employee counselling programs on employee performance in tea factories in Kericho County, Kenya. It drew its theory from the Social Exchange Theory. It employed a descriptive research design, targeting a population of 133 employees from all management levels across different functional departments in 14 tea factories in Kericho County using structured questionnaires. Correlation analysis revealed that employee counselling programs affect employee performance of tea factories in Kericho county (r = 0.366, p = 0.000), R2 = 0.134, showing that employee counselling alone can explain approximately 13% of the variance in employee performance. The regression model further revealed a strong relationship between employee counselling and employee performance (β = 0.205, p = 0.003). The findings indicated a positive and statistically significant effect that employee counselling programs have on employee performance of tea factories in Kericho County, Kenya. It further recommended that organizations regularly review the effectiveness of these counselling programs and make necessary adjustments to align them with employee mental and emotional well-being and organizational goals.