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An investigation of entrepreneurial skills for contingent employees in small retail businesses as job security determinants

SMEs provide employment to approximately 61 per cent of households in South Africa (SA). Though, entrepreneurial activity rate (TEA) still poses a great concern, at 5.9% which is far below that of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China). Contingent employees in small retail businesses continue to face job insecurity as a result of poor working conditions and ununionized. This study aims to explore whether contingent employees have entrepreneurial skills for self-employability as an opportunity to offset job insecurity in Roodepoort, SA. Likewise, the study used a quantitative approach and sampled 129 contingent employees from 60 small retail businesses in Roodepoort. Findings revealed that there is a significant relationship between entrepreneurial skills, job insecurity and contingent employees regarding job insecurity.


Introduction 
Freelance statistic (2015) indicates that the freelance workforce is powerful and growing at a fast pace. It is anticipated that by 2020, more than 40% of the US workforce will be so-called contingent workers. Those who are temporary employees and hired to assist employers to meet business demands, yet, allow the employer to avoid the cost of hiring a regular employee (Heathfield, 2016). Nonetheless, the South African workforce has been faced with various challenges since the revised labor laws in the early 1990s, that resulted in an increased use of contingent employees and diminishing prospects of permanent employment ( Fourie (2008, p. 111) expressed disenchantment on the limitations of the South African labor laws that, in his view, seemed to only have safeguard the permanent employees' environment, while lacking the efficiency to advance the rights of contingent employees. As a result of this phenomenon, there has been an unprecedented increase in contingent employment, as opposed to permanent employees.
Part-time-employment as opposed to permanent job security, resulted in identification of the gap of entrepreneurship skills for contingent employees as a fundamental base to self-employment rather than contingent job insecurity. In a study conducted by Bhandari and Heshmati (2006, p. 3), they assert that job insecurity remains a matter of grave concern, and presents an opportunity for closer investigation and debate around the factors that may exacerbate entrepreneurial conversation and activity. A compelling argument advanced by Fourie (2008, p. 112) is that most contingent employees are poorly educated, unskilled and have no access to collective bargaining coverage leaving them exposed to job insecurity, as compared to full-time employees. Furthermore, GEM (2012, p. 7) report revealed that gender disparities are also a key role determinants in contingent employment. Ethnicity also plays a an important contribution as higher rate of contingent jobs are held by African, 81.4 per cent compared to 10.1 percent Coloured, Asians, 3.9 per cent and White, 4.7 per cent. There are no proper evidence provided why Asians are few operating as contingent workers. This could have added more value in understanding perceptions from different ethnic groups pertaining contingent workforce.
In a study conducted by Dachapalli and Parumasur (2012, p. 31), it is established that there are other factors which encouraged contingent employment that emanated as the result of the global economic downturn. These were factors such as the volatile situation in Europe, United States of America and the Middle East, outsourcing certain functions of business and new advances in information technology. This view was propelled by the proven difficulties of businesses to accelerate growth, whilst the world economy was seen to be in shambles. Dachapalli and Parumasur (2012, p. 31) emphasized that the consequences were embedded by companies and, as such, they had to minimize production costs in order to survive. In their view, the concept is built towards the underlying factor as a sense of powerlessness or fear for job loss by an employee. Given the perspective of what job insecurity is, the scholars' contribution provided a platform for entrepreneurial skills as another intervention within the entrepreneur's support system that involves identifying and analyzing potential entrepreneurs' creativity and innovation, sources of business finance, marketing skills, financial and accounting skills and other relevant skills. Therefore, in this paper, the objectives are:  to investigate whether contingent employees have the necessary entrepreneurial skills to start their own business as a job security determinant and entrepreneurial factor;  to investigate whether contingent employees have entrepreneurial skills in Roodepoort, SA.
The research question was formulated to answer whether contingent employees have entrepreneurial skills in small retail businesses of Roodepoort, SA. Two hypothetical statements were formulated to further investigate the problem: H 0 : Job insecurity is not associated with nature of organization.
H 1 : Job insecurity is associated with nature of organization.

Research problem
In South Africa, 91 per cent of formal small businesses contribute between 52-57 per cent to GDP and 61 per cent to employment ( Therefore, entrepreneurial skills are seen as a beacon of hope for the job loss and a pull-factor to job insecurity that often drive employees to entrepreneurship (Verheul, Thurik Hessels & van der Zwan, 2010, p. 5).

Research methodology
Cooper and Schindler (2014, p. 82) define research design as a technique method or a plan of steps undertaken to respond to the study problem and objectives. In this study, a quantitative approach was followed using a descriptive survey. The targeted population comprised of contingent employees from small retail businesses in Roodepoort, Gauteng. Roodepoort is located in the western part of Johannesburg in the Gauteng Province of South Africa. The population of Roodepoort is estimated at approximately 225 000 (Mongabay.com, 2012). According to the Roodepoort Information and Chamber of Commerce & Industry, 503 small businesses are available on their database. The composition of SMEs comprised of beauty apparel shops, liquor stores, restaurants & food outlets, filling stations, general dealers and clothing stores. The approach was applied to offset possible overestimation or underestimation of the population.
Probability sampling was suitable for the study given that the target participants were contingent employees and no modifications were permitted. According to the Roodepoort Information and Chamber of Commerce & Industry, 503 small businesses are available on their database. Questionnaires were personally distributed to 60 small retail businesses. A quota of 10 per cent contingent employees per small retail business was administered due to survey cost implication. Furthermore, a five point Likert rating scale where one (1) indicates strongly agree and five (5) indicates strongly disagree was used to measure variables.
Other related rating scales such as "very certain and very uncertain", "very likely and very unlikely" and no "understanding and full understanding" were used to test variables. A Likert scale provides a volume of data and was easier and quicker to construct. The main advantage of the scale was to add each respondent's score and secure the total score. In this case, the aim was to control the score of the responses from contingent employees when presenting questions to participants. Prior to questionnaire administration, it was critical to explain matters of ethical considerations, the researcher provided a covering letter and the research which was bearing the University of South Africa ethics approval certificate to collect data explaining the nature of the research project, providing the assurance that the privacy of the participants in the small retail businesses in the Roodepoort District was protected, and matters of anonymity and confidentiality would be promoted and maintained (Cooper and Schindler, 2006, p. 709). Once this was done, a structured questionnaire was administered to collect data. Closed-ended questions were used to address required objectives in order to make statistical inferences about the characteristics of the contingent employees.
SPSS software was used in order to describe and analyze sets of quantitative data with regard to contingent employees. Data were edited and captured for processing, with the provision of descriptive measures aimed at describing data in terms of structure. Data were also summarized for each variable in the form of frequency tables. To enhance reliability in this study, the instruments were administered consistently so that there was a standardization in the use of the instrument from one respondent to the other amongst contingent employees (Zikmund, Babin, Carr & Griffin, 2010, p. 304). While ensuring validity was measured properly, by ensuring that the instrument used measured what it was supposed to measure to avoid biasness. Employees who experience job security feel job satisfied and protected, while the opposite is job insecurity. As a remedy for job insecurity, contingent employees are expected to opt for alternatives, and the obvious one is entrepreneurship. The consequences of job insecurity and the characteristics of contingent employees in small retail businesses are explored in this context. Firstly, job security and job insecurity measurements are discussed below. For the components of job insecurity, see Table 1. Employability has been greatly associated with individual career trajectory, such as education, training, occupational position and experience (Smith, 2010, p. 280). Therefore, the context of lifelong and job-related learning forms basis for employability.

Determinants of job insecurity. Job insecurity
According to Smith (2010, p. 281), the new economy expects everyone including permanent employees to think as entrepreneurs who must avoid job insecurity by retraining and add value to the organization so that they respond to new opportunities. The global environment pressures everyone to constantly improve competencies and prepare for change. Furthermore, good work relationship between a contingent employee and the supervisor can leverage chances for re-employment or promotion of part-time employee (

Findings
Factor analysis was carried out to reduce the number of variables into small factors (new variables). It was also used to investigate the internal consistency of factors. That is, how closely related set of items (variables in each factor) are as a group.  The purpose of the section was to determine and compare perceptions and views of the different groups of respondents. The strength of the relationships between the two constructs, entrepreneurial skills and job insecurity, of contingent employees acknowledging entrepreneurship as an option in this study was important. Contingent employees appear to possess high level of entrepreneurial proficiencies in Roodepoort. They seem to agree that effective entrepreneurial can be attained through education and training.

Distribution of respondents by gender and by ethnicity
Conclusions of the findings  The overall absence of job insecurity amongst contingent employees poses a question whether can be attributed to good working conditions in small retail businesses. An entrepreneurial drive is low amongst contingent employees.  Potential entrepreneurs share some of the entrepreneurial skills set highlighted in the study. Individual who has all proffered entrepreneurial skills has high chance of business success.  Potential entrepreneurs seem to share similar methods of learning entrepreneurship.  South African institutions of learning teach wide range of entrepreneurial skills, but do not offer proper entrepreneurial skills.

Limitations of the study
The limitations of the study include the following:  The sample size of the study was relatively limited. 503 small businesses were reported to by the Roodepoort Information and Roodepoort Chamber of Commerce & Industry (2012). Some of small businesses in the database were not within retailing sector. Future studies need a larger sample size in order to generalize and confirm results.  The sample frame has unknown characteristics.
Unavailability of comprehensive contingent employees' database.  Not all small retail businesses employ contingent employees. Some small retail businesses were busy (data collected in December 2014) and could not afford time to contingent employees to participate.  Some of the small retail businesses were found to have had relocated or closed down when the questionnaire was distributed.  Hundred and sixty five respondents were reached, but only hundred and twenty nine responses met the study requirements. Although it would be great to reach more respondents, the unavailability of contingent employees' database made it difficult.

Recommendations regarding entrepreneurial skills
The findings indicate that contingent employees need entrepreneurial skills in Roodepoort. It is clear that entrepreneurial skills fulfill multiple roles. It can pull contingent employees from job insecurity and push them towards entrepreneurship. Education and training program should be devised and rolled out for young people.