Abstract:
This paper deals with the problem of poor service delivery in municipalities across South Africa – a problem that
seems to elude a lasting solution. It assesses the extent to which perceived fairness in human resource management
(HRM) practices affect service quality of selected municipalities in South Africa. Falling on organizational justice
theory, it is posited that the HRM practices of municipalities could explain the poor service being delivered by
municipalities in South Africa. Quantitative data collected from employees of nine randomly selected municipalities
in the Free State Province was used to create indices for employee fairness perceptions of HRM practices as well as
service quality as perceived by customers. From regression analysis, the results indicate that: employees perceive
HRM practices as unfair; service delivery does not meet citizens’ expectations; and, statistically speaking, quality of
service delivery is significantly and positively related to perceived fairness in HRM practices namely compensation
(distributive); recruitment and Selection (procedural); and promotion (procedural) at the .05 and .01 levels of
significance – meaning that fair HRM practices are important for quality service delivery.
