Conclusion

Abstract

South Africa is perceived as one of the most unequal societies, since this country is still struggling to cope with the legacy of apartheid. The South African Gini coefficient is one of the highest in the world. A major reason for this remains the difference in quality of skills development of black and white South Africans (Reddy 2000). After centuries of white minority rule , it cannot be expected that these inequities change in a short period of time, but it seems that it is not changing fast enough. This shows in the increase of inequity from 1994 to a larger Gini coefficient in 2009. This has a huge impact on wellness on various spheres. South Africa has seen an increase of unprotected strikes in the past 2 years. This was highlighted with the Marikana massacre of 16 August 2012, where 36 employees participating in an unprotected strike were shot dead by the South African Police Services . Focus was placed on certain aspects of the psychological contract where breach and violation could be experienced. Possible reasons for these experiences of the psychological contract were identified. The results can therefore assist decision-makers in addressing certain experiences of violation, influencing work-related wellness, of the psychological contract. This can also give organisational change managers an indication of the importance of the psychological contract in the establishment of a new employment relationship.

Chapter Aim

This book focuses on the link between the employee–organisation relations (EOR)—the employment relationship and the psychological contract—and the economic value of wellness—individual and relational . This was approached by first discussing the psychological contract, including the impact thereof on individual wellness. Thereafter (Chap. 3), the employment relationship, as part of the EOR, was looked at from a South African context. Chapter 4 focused on the economic value of wellness in the workplace , where the individual and relational impacts were discussed.