Headteachers’ Human Resource Management Practices and Teacher Job Satisfaction in Ghanaian Basic Schools

This study investigated the contribution of headteachers’ human resource management (HRM) practices in addressing low teacher job satisfaction in Ghanaian basic schools. Employing a descriptive survey design and a questionnaire as the data collection instrument, the study gathered data from 286 teachers in one educational municipality in Ghana. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations) and hierarchical multiple regression analysis. In the first step of the regression model, teachers’ gender, educational qualification, and school type were entered as control variables. In the second step, the four HRM practices–induction and orientation, training and development, health and safety management, and participation in decision-making–were added to assess their unique contribution to teacher job satisfaction. The results indicated that headteachers moderately implemented induction and orientation, training and development, health and safety management, and teacher participation in decision-making. Furthermore, it emerged that health and safety management was the most significant predictor of teachers’ job satisfaction, followed by induction and orientation. The study recommends that educational authorities prioritize and strengthen health and safety management by implementing policies that promote teachers’ health and well-being within schools, to boost their job satisfaction.