Public Service Employee Attitude Towards Training and Development Programmes: The Mediating Role of Gender and Job Title

The study examines employees' attitudes towards the training and development programmes offered by the public service based on Gender and Job title. The study followed a quantitative approach, and a self-developed and self-administered research instrument was used for data collection. The sample consisted of 286 employees in skilled, semi-skilled, and managerial positions within the Mpumalanga government complex. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyse employees' attitudes based on Gender, and Kruskal Wallis gathered employees' attitudes based on Job titles. The instrument was validated using Cronbach alpha and yielded an alpha coefficient of (α).853, which Exploratory and Confirmatory factor analysis further validated. The study results revealed differences in employees' attitudes based on Gender on the ease of training and quality of training programmes dimensions. Furthermore, differences were revealed based on the Job title on the quality of training, facilitation of training, and career and personal development dimensions. The study concludes that the public service needs to address the skills gap and shortage within its service. The study recommends that employers, especially the public sector, consider introducing tailor-made training and developmental programmes for individual employees, and training materials should be designed to address the specific needs of individuals or groups of employees with similar needs.