19 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA Asian Business Research Journal Vol. 5, 19-27, 2020 ISSN : 2576-6759 DOI: 10.20448/journal.518.2020.5.19.27 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA Mediated Effect of Employee Job Satisfaction on Employees’ Happiness at Work and Analysis of Motivational Factors: Evidence from Telecommunication Sector Rehan Sohail Butt1 Xuezhou Wen2 Rana Yassir Hussain3 ( Corresponding Author) 1,3School of Management, Jiangsu University, China. 2School of Management, Jiangsu University, China/School of Business, Jiangnan University, China. Abstract Happiness at the workplace is an important ingredient in improving productivity at any organization. This study, therefore, sought to examine the effect of employee job satisfaction on employee’s happiness at work among telecommunication workers in Pakistan. The study was anchored on the motivation theory and includes some factors that influence motivation at the work place. The motivational factors include job inspiration, job security, benefits/salary, work environment and leadership. These motivational factors are expected to influence the dependent variable (happiness at work) through a mediating variable (employee job satisfaction). Employee job satisfaction functioning as an independent variable is also expected to influence the exogenous variable (happiness at work). Data for the study was obtained from a sample of 515 telecoms workers from Pakistan using a structured questionnaire. The data was analyzed through Structural Equation Modeling via SPSS 22 and SmartPLS 3.0. Findings from this study indicate factors that determine or influence employees' job satisfaction are job inspiration, benefits, job security, and leadership in that order. The study further found a positive and significant relationship between the independent variables (job inspiration and benefits) and employee job satisfaction. Also, the study found that employee job satisfaction has a positive and significant influence on happiness at work. The study builds on the empirical findings on factors influencing employee job satisfaction by linking it with happiness at work in the telecoms sector This study contributes to the extant literature on happiness at work and makes valuable contribution to future research in this area. Keywords: Employee job satisfaction, Job inspiration, Job security, Leadership, Happiness at work, Work environment. JEL Classification: L29. 1. Introduction Satisfied employees would work hard and put much effort their work in order to be more productive and efficient. When employees are satisfied with the work they do, they become happy and produce better results than when they are unhappy. Employee job satisfaction according to Gu, Zhen, Song, and Xu (2019) is “a measure of people’s contentedness with their job and an assessment of their work experience”. One of the earliest definitions of job satisfaction as “a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from one’s work or work experiences” (Gu et al., 2019). Job satisfaction would thus influence how employees work and the level of involvement and commitment they put in their work. mentioned four dimensions that have a great impact on employee job satisfaction as salary, efficiency in work, fringe supervision (Khuong & Tien, 2013). Satisfaction is a term that has been frequently used interchangeably with happiness. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, happiness is “a state of mind or feeling comprising contentment, satisfaction, pleasure or joy”. Happiness has been used in the literature frequently and interchangeably with other terms such as “subjective wellbeing” “psychological wellbeing”, and “satisfaction” (Ryff & Singer, 2008; Wright & Cropanzano, 2007). Achor (2010)opine that happy people create successful careers for themselves due to the fact that they find happiness in the workplace. Wesarat, Sharif, and Abdul Majid (2015) are also of the opinion that happiness at the workplace means the satisfaction employees obtain with the nature of work and their personal lives. This idea is related to individual’s subjective well-being; i.e. how satisfied people are with their work environment. Being happy at the workplace is an important factor for improving an organization’s performance (Wesarat et al., 2015). Happy people would thus be more productive and efficient at the work they do compare with unhappy employees. Asiyabi and Mirabi (2012) suggest that being happy for employees could mean that employees would transfer their happiness from office to home and vice versa. A happy employee would thus make a productive and efficient http://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.20448/journal.518.2020.5.19.27&domain=pdf&date_stamp=2017-01-14 http://ecsenet.com/index.php/2576-6759/article/view/73 Asian Business Research Journal, 2020, 5: 19-27 20 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA workforce for the firm. Despite the importance of happiness to individuals and organizations, the concept is however still vague. Researchers are yet to come to an agreement with regards to what constitutes happiness in the workplace. The concept has been a subject of debate from earliest times within philosophy (Cahn & Vitrano, 2008). Additionally, although there is a considerable amount of literature on the subject, it appears however that only a handful of scientific theory research has been undertaken thus far from organisational perspective (McGonagle, 2015). Also, “a robust framework for application in the work setting is still missing”(Tasnim, 2016) and this calls for extensive research in that regard to fill the gap in theory. This study, therefore, aims at bridging the gap in theory and literature. Thus, this study focuses on finding out factors influencing employees’ job satisfaction and how does job satisfaction influence happiness in the workplace. The main objective of this study, therefore, is to explore factors influencing employee job satisfaction among telecommunication workers in Pakistan. This study thus seeks to achieve the following objectives; 1. Identify factors that influence employee job satisfaction among telecommunication workers in Pakistan. 2. Assess the effect of employee job satisfaction on employees’ happiness at work. 2. Theoretical Underpinnings 2.1. Employee Job Satisfaction Brief (1998) defined job satisfaction as “an internal state that was expressed by effectively or cognitively evaluating an experienced job with some degree of favour or disfavor”. Spector (1997) on the other hand defined employee job satisfaction to mean an individual’s satisfaction with his/her job, indicating whether or not he or she likes the job. Motivating and retaining qualified employees thus is very important in ensuring the success of organizations (Sohail & Jang, 2017). The Oxford dictionary also defines satisfaction as “the feeling of pleasure that arises when you have the things you want or need or when the things you want to happen”. Rice, McFarlin, and Bennett (1989) opined that satisfaction is determined by comparing current job experiences against some personal set standards and then evaluating whether one is satisfied with the current job or not (Khuong & Tien, 2013). Herzberg (1968) provided the earliest known investigation into the factors that lead to job satisfaction. In his study, Herzberg interviewed a group of employees to determine what made them satisfied or dissatisfied with their job. He classified these factors as motivators and hygiene factors (Herzberg, 1968). Motivators-hygiene factors theory revealed that factors determining job satisfaction were distinct from factors influencing job dissatisfaction (Khuong & Tien, 2013). Hygiene factors also known as job ‘dissatisfies’ include company policy, administration, supervision, salary, interpersonal relations, and working conditions. Motivators, on the other hand, known as job ‘satisfiers’ included achievement, recognition, work itself, and responsibility (Sowmya & Panchanatham, 2011). With the turn of the 21st century, various scholars have provided new definitions and constituents of employee job satisfaction. Pearson (1991) for instance mentioned the factors that influence employee job satisfaction as payment, promotion, and autonomy. Arsic, Nikolic, Zivkovic, Urosevic, and Mihajlovic (2012) on their part using the elements of TQM practice mentioned that factors that influenced employee job satisfaction are top management commitment, employee empowerment, teamwork, job evaluation, employee compensation (Khuong & Tien, 2013). Jun, Cai, and Shin (2006) also using the TQM added that factors influencing employee job satisfaction included employee empowerment, teamwork, and employee compensation. 2.2. Materials and Hypotheses 2.2.1. Benefits/Salaries Compensation or benefits has been identified as one of the key influencing factors of employee job satisfaction. Compensation management is a fundamental content of human resources management in organizations (Hee, Yi, Ping, Kowang, & Fei, 2019). Strategy development and human resource development of organizations have been closely related to compensation management. According to Hee et al. (2019) six different employee compensation systems paid by companies are job-based pay, skill or experience-based pay, broad banding with salary arrays, team-based pay, variable compensation, and executive compensation. Empirical findings have linked employee job satisfaction with benefits or salaries. Nguyen, Taylor, and Bradley (2003) concluded that job satisfaction is the result of promotion opportunities in the organization. Tessema and Soeters (2006) also reported positive relationship between promotion practices and employee performance. Khan., Nawaz, Aleem, and Hamed (2012) also found that factors such as pay and promotion influence employee job satisfaction and performance. Based on the above, we formulate the hypothesis: H1:Benefits/Salaries have a positive influence on employee job satisfaction. 2.2.2. Job Inspiration Job inspiration implies that employees are satisfied with their assigned jobs, and are able to achieve goals. Meaningful activity, including work (Warr, 2007) and philanthropic activity, including volunteering jobs, has been shown to impact happiness positively (Meier & Stutzer, 2008). Much of the studies on employee happiness at work reveal that factors such as stable job, challenging, and interesting work enhance work attitudes and improves employee happiness (Fisher, 2010). Available evidence shows that the above-mentioned factors are positively related to employee happiness, and jointly explain job satisfaction in organizations (Fisher, 2010). Wesarat et al. (2015) mentioned that work activities are job undertakings engaged in by employees. Whiles some employees are excited about their job or task others are not which leads to negative experiences at work (Siegall & McDonald, 2004). Employees thus could have different satisfaction levels at work doing various work activities which would result in happiness at work (Tadić, Bakker, & Oerlemans, 2013). Employees engage in meaningful work activities when they feel excited or happy in their job. Managers must, therefore, identify source of meaningful work and ensure that employees get satisfaction in their work (Cleavenger & Munyon, 2013; Vasconcelos, 2008). If employees recognize reasons or inspirations in carrying out meaningful work, they may be happy to do their work (Dimitrov, 2012; MacMillan, 2009). We hypothesis that: H2: Job inspiration has a positive and significant effect on employee’s job satisfaction. Asian Business Research Journal, 2020, 5: 19-27 21 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA 2.2.3. Job Security Job security refers to employees’ assurance or belief that they will keep their current job. Employees with “a high level of job security have a low probability of losing their job in the near future” (Sageer, Rafat, & Agarwal, 2012). Employees are always on the edge fearing the possibility of their employment being terminated. This fear puts them in a rather defensive position and are not happy at work due to the uncertainty about their future. As a result, employees might display a certain level of unhappiness with their work. Past studies have been conducted to find out whether or not job security has a negative influence on employees ‘happiness. Khan, Nawaz, Aleem, and Hamed (2015) found a positive relationship between job security and employee satisfaction among medical staff in Pakistan. We propose the hypothesis that: H3: Job security would have a significant and positive influence on employee job satisfaction at the workplace. 2.2.4. Leadership Organizations promote and create happiness for employees through motivation, awareness, and being dedicated to employees’ welfare. Good leaders engage in 2-way, transparent communication with their staff as well as ensuring conducive work atmosphere for their staff. Employee happiness at work therefore is dependent on the leader’s behavior. As Warr (2007) noted, “a positive leader’s behavior is one that includes willingness to listen to employees, showing support, respect and concern for employees’ welfare, and a tendency to show appreciation for employees and their work well done” (Stoi, 2016). Thus, a good leader must consider employees feelings and provide inspiration, that would encourage and give meaning to employees' work (Cleavenger & Munyon, 2013; Vasconcelos, 2008). Stoi (2016) argues that employees achieve some level of satisfaction when the organisation places some importance to the work they do (Dimitrov, 2012; MacMillan, 2009). Thus employees who are satisfied with their leadership would be satisfied with their work and eventually find happiness. Orthodoxia, Kourtesopoulou, and Kriemadis (2019) examined the relationship between leadership behaviors and job satisfaction and found a significant positive relationship between transformational and transactional leadership behaviors and employee job satisfaction. Also, investigating leadership style in Dutch firms, Vermeeren, Kuipers, and Steijn (2014) found a positive relationship between leadership style and employees’ satisfaction. We hypothesis thus: H4: Leadership would have a positive influence on employee’s job satisfaction. 2.2.5. Work Environment Working environment according to Raziq and Maulabakhsh (2015) involves two broader dimensions, work and context. Work accordingly to them includes different characteristics and tasks such as “training, control one’s own job-related activities, a sense of achievement from work, variety in tasks and the intrinsic value for a task” (Raziq & Maulabakhsh, 2015). Context on the other hand comprises the physical working conditions and the social working conditions (Gazioglu & Tansel, 2006; Skalli, Theodossiou, & Vasileiou, 2008). Spector (1997) also explained the working environment as consisting of “safety to employees, job security, good relations with co-workers, recognition for good performance, motivation for performing well and participation in the decision-making process of the firm”. He further explained that when employees realize how high in esteem the firm holds them, they will have a high level of commitment and a sense of ownership for their organization (Raziq & Maulabakhsh, 2015). Available literature has suggested a positive and direct link between work environment and job satisfaction. Buhai, Cottini, and Nielseny (2008) found that firms’ productivity can be increased by improving the physical dimensions of the work environment (Raziq & Maulabakhsh, 2015). Bakotic and Babic (2013) also found a positive relationship between working conditions and employee job satisfaction. They mentioned the working condition as an important factor for job satisfaction, and which might also lead to employees ‘dissatisfaction. A study by Tariq, Ramzan, and Riaz (2013) in telecom sector revealed that factors such as workload, salary, stress, and conflicts with family due to job would lead to employee dissatisfaction. We hypothesize thus; H5: Working environment would have a positive or negative influence on employee job satisfaction at the workplace. 2.2.6. Relationship between Employee Job Satisfaction and Happiness at Work Satisfaction is a term that has been frequently used interchangeably with happiness. There is an “affective component” to satisfaction as well as “a cognitive evaluative component” which involves making a judgment with regards to individual needs wants and if these have been achieved (McGonagle, 2015). De Witte et al. (2010) investigated the relationship between job insecurity and happiness and found that there is a significant negative impact of job insecurity on happiness. Wegge, Van Dick, Fisher, Wecking, and Moltzen (2006) also investigated the relationship between organizational identity, job satisfaction, and employee’s well-being and found that organizational identity predicted job satisfaction and employee’s well-being (Wegge et al., 2006). H6: Employee job satisfaction has a positive and significant effect on happiness at work. Figure-1. Mediating role of EJS in the HAW-Motivational Factors Relationship. Asian Business Research Journal, 2020, 5: 19-27 22 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA 3. Methodology The survey method was utilized in this study to assess factors that influence employees’ job satisfaction as well as the effect of job satisfaction on employees’ happiness at work. The survey method was chosen because it suited the purpose and nature of this research. A convenient sampling technique was used to sample 515 telecommunication workers in Pakistan see Table 2. Data for the study was obtained through a structured questionnaire developed using previous scale. The questionnaire was pre-tested and self-administered to the respondents by the researcher and trained field researchers. The respondents were all well informed about the study and their approval was sought before distributing the questionnaire to them. Also, the researchers assured the respondents of anonymity and confidentiality of their responses. A five-point Likert scale which option ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5) was used to measure variables for the research constructs as recommended in previous studies. The questionnaire consisted of 54 multi measurement items and six demographic questions see Table 2. The collected data was cleaned, sorted and coded using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS V.22). An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was then performed via SPSS to assess the factor loadings of the individual constructs in the conceptual model. The EFA was thus carried out for these three reasons: “(1) Assess the suitability of the data for factor analysis, (2) Factor extraction, and (3) Factor rotation and interpretation” (Ozdamar, 2017). A confirmatory factor analysis was then carried out and the result transferred to SmartPLS 3 software for further analysis. 4. Results of the Study 4.1. Reliability and Validity of Scales The data was first analyzed to ensure instrument quality by convergent and discriminant validity. Applying SPSS, the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted to measure the underlying dimension associated with 49 items. The Bartlett’s test of Sphericity and Kaiser–Mayer–Olkin (KMO) measure of the sampling adequacy were used to measure the construct. To perform factor analysis, the KMO score should be 0.6 or above (Ozdamar, 2017). The result of the Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity and KMO shows that the scales adopted for the study are suitable for the factor analysis Table 1. It shows a Chi-square value of 27607.538 and significant value (p > 0.000). Table-1. KMO and Bartlett's test. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy. .763 Bartlett's Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-Square 27607.538 Df 1176 Sig. .000 4.2. Demographic Characteristics of Respondents Some demographic variables were collected in this study. These include gender, age, level of education, department, work experience, salary and marital status see Table 2. Table-2. Demographics of respondents. Variable Category No (%) Gender Male 392(76.1) Female 123(23.9) Age (years) 20 - 30 219(42.5) 31 – 40 246(47.8) 41 – 50 50(9.7) Level of education Bachelor’s Degree 216(46.9) Master’s level 291(56.5) PhD degree 8(1.6) Department HR 35(6.8) Financial 8(1.6) Sales & Marketing 218(42.3) Administration 45(8.7) Others 209(40.6) Work experience 1 to 5 years 127(24.7) 6 to 10 years 260(50.5) 11 to 15 years 125(24.3) 16 years and above 3(0.6) Salary below 20,000 11(2) 20,000 To 40,000 177(34) 40,000 To 60,000 159(31) Above 60,000 168(33) Marital status Married 340(66) Single 175(34) Table 2 shows the demographics of respondents; 76.1% of the respondents are males and 23.9% are females. In terms of gender, 42.5% of the respondents were between 20 and 30 years; 47.8 % are between 31 and 40 years; and 9.7% are between the ages of 41 and 50. With regards to the educational qualification of the respondents,46.9% of the respondents have a bachelor’s degree; 56.5% have master’s level qualification; and 1.6% have Ph.D. qualifications. Table 2 further shows that 6.8% of the respondents work in the HR department; 1.6% work in the financial department; 42.3% in the marketing & sales department; 8.7% work in the administration; and 40.6% work in other departments. Also, 24.7% of the respondents have worked in the company between 1 to 5 years; 50.5% Asian Business Research Journal, 2020, 5: 19-27 23 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA between 6 to 10 years; 24.3% also worked between 11 to 15 years; and 0.6 have worked for over 16 years. With regards to the salary of respondents 2% receive below 20,000; 34% 20,000 to 40,000; 31% receive 40,000 to 60,000; and 33% receive more than 60,000. Also, regarding the marital status of respondents, 66% are married; and 34% are single see Table 2. Table-3. Factor loading and Construct Reliability. FL CA rho_A CR AVE CA rho_A CR AVE BS_1 0.781 0.880 0.888 0.909 0.626 BS_2 0.802 BS_3 0.760 BS_4 0.838 BS_5 0.843 BS_6 0.715 EJS_1 0.836 0.855 0.857 0.902 0.696 EJS_2 0.822 EJS_3 0.861 EJS_4 0.818 HAW_1 0.927 0.901 0.905 0.938 0.835 HAW_2 0.923 HAW_3 0.891 JI_1 0.787 0.890 0.892 0.912 0.566 JI_2 0.759 JI_3 0.761 JI_4 0.739 JI_5 0.707 JI_6 0.745 JI_7 0.798 JI_8 0.715 JSTY_1 0.820 0.838 0.846 0.891 0.672 JSTY_2 0.852 JSTY_3 0.840 JSTY_4 0.765 LSP_1 0.748 0.915 0.922 0.930 0.626 LSP_2 0.828 LSP_3 0.782 LSP_4 0.777 LSP_5 0.807 LSP_6 0.786 LSP_7 0.852 LSP_8 0.745 WE_1 0.762 0.742 0.746 0.854 0.661 WE_2 0.810 WE_3 0.864 According to Table 3, all the measured variables had Cronbach’s alphas above 0.70, indicating high reliability for the constructs. The validity of the constructs was achieved through the construct validity assessment. It is assessed through convergent validity and discriminant validity (Ringle, Wende, & Becker, 2015). Convergent validity was considered adequate since the average variance extracted (AVEs) and composite reliability (Wright & Cropanzano, 2007) satisfied the minimum of 0.50 and 0.70 respectively (Fornell & Larcker, 1981). Table-4. Discriminant Validity. BS EJS HW JI JS LSP WE BS 0.791 EJS 0.554 0.835 HW 0.473 0.573 0.914 JI 0.473 0.841 0.516 0.752 JS 0.684 0.536 0.474 0.523 0.820 LSP 0.351 0.510 0.451 0.585 0.481 0.791 WE 0.411 0.816 0.514 0.791 0.424 0.514 0.813 Table 4 also shows discriminant validity and requires that the variables load higher than any other constructs on its scale. From Table 2, discriminant validity was achieved since the factors loaded higher on their scales. Benefits had a value of (0.79), Employee job satisfaction (0.83), Happiness at work (0.9), Job Inspiration (0.75), Job security (0.8), Leadership (0.8) and Work environment (0.8). 4.3. Results of Structural Model The assessment of the structural model was done using regression weights, t-values, and p-values for the significance of t-statistics (Chin, 2010). The results of structural model for testing the research hypotheses are presented in Table 5. Asian Business Research Journal, 2020, 5: 19-27 24 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA Figure-2. Structural model of relationship between job satisfaction and happiness at work. Figure 2 the structural model’s assessment regarding the relationship between the variables. The assessment includes the path coefficients that estimate the relationship between the variables. From Figure 2, employee job satisfaction related positively with job inspiration, benefits, job security, working environment, and leadership. Job inspiration had the highest influence on employee job satisfaction (45.4%), followed by work environment (38.8%); and benefits (16. 7%). Leadership, on the other hand, had a negative relationship with (-3.1%) respectively. It is expected that organizations would focus on these factors to get the result out of employees as these are the core issues influencing employee satisfaction. Also, employee job satisfaction had a positive relationship with happiness at work (57.3%). What this means is that, once employees feel satisfied at the workplace, they would find happiness which is needed in ensuring employees work hard to achieve targeted goals and objectives thereby ensuring organisational performance. Figure-3. Path Analysis of HAW, EJS and Motivational Factors Relationship 4.4. Hypothesis Test A test for hypothesis was done using bootstrapping with 5000 samples on factors that influence or determine happiness at work. Benefits, Job inspiration, and Work environment had a positive and significant relationship with Asian Business Research Journal, 2020, 5: 19-27 25 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA Employee Job satisfaction (EJS). Also, Job Satisfaction had a direct positive influence on Happiness at work. Benefits had a positive and significant effect on EJS (β = 0.167; t= 5.39; p < 0.001); this led to the acceptance of hypothesis 1. The Beta score 0.167 means that, when employee’s benefits increase by 1%, employee job satisfaction improves by 16.7%. This means that employee benefit has a positive effect on the satisfaction of employees. Job inspiration had a significant and positive effect on EJS (β = 0.455; t= 14.3; p < 0.001); this led to the acceptance of hypothesis 2. This means that when employees are inspired by the kind of work they do, they would find satisfaction with the work they do see Table 5. Job security also had a positive but insignificant relationship with employee job satisfaction (β = 0.034; t = 1.07; p > 0.05); hypothesis H3 was therefore not accepted. Leadership also had a negative and insignificant effect on employee job satisfaction (β = -0.031; t= 0.03; p > 0.05); H4 was also not accepted (see Table 5). Work environment had a positive and significant effect on EJS (β = 0.388; t= 13.89; p < 0.001); this led to the acceptance of H5. Employees' job satisfaction also had a positive and significant effect on Happiness at work (β = 0.573; t= 15.23; p < 0.001); this led to the acceptance of H6. The Beta score means that when employee job satisfaction improves by 1%, employees’ happiness at work improves by about 57.3%. Table-5. Results of hypothesis test. Hypothesis Path β STDEV t-value p-value HI BS -> EJS 0.167 0.031 5.39 *** H2 JI -> EJS 0.455 0.032 14.31 *** H3 JS -> EJS 0.034 0.032 1.07 0.29 H4 LSP -> EJS -0.031 0.031 0.03 0.25 H5 WE -> EJS 0.388 0.028 13.89 *** H5 EJS -> HW 0.573 0.038 15.23 *** The R squared score shows that, together, the independent variables influenced happiness at work by about 73%. Table-6. Indirect effect of BS, JI, JSTY, LSP and WE on Happiness at work. Paths B STDEV t-value p-value BS -> EJS -> HW 0.103 0.0195 5.526 0.000 JI -> EJS -> HW 0.270 0.028 9.702 0.000 JSTY -> EJS -> HW 0.003 0.020 0.166 0.869 LSP -> EJS -> HW -0.005 0.016 0.285 0.776 WE -> EJS -> HW 0.207 0.019 11.165 0.000 Table 6 shows the indirect effect in the relationship between the endogenous and exogenous variables. The table shows that benefits, job inspiration, and work environment influence Happiness at work indirectly through employee job satisfaction. BS had a positive and significant effect on HW (β = 0.103; t= 5.526; p < 0.001). The Beta score here means that, when employees benefit improves by 1%, employees’ happiness at work also increases by about 10%. Also, JI had a positive and significant effect on HW (β = 0.270; t= 9.70; p < 0.001); WE also had a positive and significant effect on HW (β = 0.207; t= 11.165; p < 0.001). 5. Discussion First, this study revealed that the factors that determine or influence employees’ job satisfaction are job inspiration, benefits, job security, and leadership in that order. Job inspiration contributes more significantly to employee job satisfaction (45.5%); followed by work environment (38.8%), benefits (16.7%) and job security (3.4%). Leadership, however, contributed negatively to employee job satisfaction (-3.1%). This finding is significant as it shows the factors that employers should concentrate or focus on to ensure employee job satisfaction thereby increasing employees’ happiness at work. Secondly, with regards to the hypotheses stated in this study, the findings show that four out of the six hypotheses stated were supported. Thus hypothesis H1, H2, H5, and H6 were all supported by this research’s findings. The first hypothesis revealed a positive and significant relationship between Benefits/salaries and employee happiness. This finding indicates that the more inspiring work is for employees the satisfied they become doing their job. It further implies that when employees are satisfied with their assigned jobs and tasks, they and are able to achieve their work goals and output. As noted by Fisher (2010) job characteristics such as stable job, challenging and interesting work produce positive work attitudes, which then lead to satisfaction. Hypothesis two also revealed a positive relationship between job inspiration and employee job satisfaction. This finding indicates that when employees perceive to be offered adequate compensation for their work, they would be satisfied with the work they do. It further implies that wages or salaries are very important to the work of employees. This finding supports empirical results that state that job inspiration have positive influence on employee job satisfaction (Khan. et al., 2012; Nguyen et al., 2003; Tessema & Soeters, 2006). Also, the study found a positive but insignificant relationship between job security and employee job satisfaction. When employees feel that they are insulated or secured from being fired from their job, nothing comes between their satisfaction and the work they do. As noted by Sageer et al. (2012) employees are always on the alert fearing the possibility that their employment could be terminated and this would affect their level of satisfaction and happiness at the workplace. It is important for management and organisational heads therefore to provide guarantee of job tenure for employees to insulate them from premature sack or from the organisation. The fourth hypothesis also revealed a positive but insignificant relationship between leadership and happiness at work. This finding, however, contradicts earlier findings that found a significant relationship between leadership and employee job satisfaction (Orthodoxia et al., 2019; Vermeeren et al., 2014). Perhaps what this study revealed is Asian Business Research Journal, 2020, 5: 19-27 26 © 2020 by the authors; licensee Eastern Centre of Science and Education, USA that the respondents are not really satisfied with the leadership style operated in their organisation. Leadership is about motivating people to move in the desired direction that the organisation wants to move in order to achieve the goals and objectives stated. Employees would thus contribute towards the attainment of organizational goals and objectives when they are happy with the style of leadership and how they are directed. Effective leaders would thus consider employee’s feelings and know how to inspire, stimulate and give meaning to employee's work (Cleavenger & Munyon, 2013; Vasconcelos, 2008). Also, as noted by Dimitrov (2012); MacMillan (2009) when employees note the importance of their work to management, they can be more motivated and satisfied with their work. The fifth hypothesis also revealed a positive relationship between the work environment and employees' job satisfaction. When employees work in an environment that fosters spirit of togetherness, there is every reason for employees to be happy and this happiness might have a positive effect on how they work in the organisation. Also, employees need good working conditions with all the necessary tools at their disposal in order to carry on with their assigned tasks. Failure to do so would mean that employees would have to compromise and work with the available tools and materials which would not lead to their satisfaction. Furthermore, this study found a positive and significant relationship between employee job satisfaction and happiness at work. When employees are satisfied with the work they do, it influences their happiness at work. It is imperative that organisational leaders focus on ensuring employee happiness by making working conditions safe, providing needed support for employees in carrying out their work diligently and going the extra mile in showing concern about employee well-being. This finding supports what (Lee, Grace, Sirgy, Singhapakdi, & Lucianetti, 2018) stated that employees’ positive experiences in work-life i.e. job satisfaction and quality of work-life can have a positive effect on employee’s satisfaction and happiness. Again, the findings show that there is an indirect relationship between benefits, job inspiration, work environment, and Happiness at work. Benefits, work environment, and job inspiration positively influence employees’ happiness at work through employee job satisfaction. This means that factors influencing employee satisfaction could also indirectly influence employees ‘happiness at work. Organizations must, therefore, strive to ensure the satisfaction of employees at all times. 6. Conclusions This study investigated the effect of employee job satisfaction on employees’ happiness at work among telecommunication workers in Pakistan. Findings from the study show that benefits, job inspiration, and work environment influence employee happiness as well as employees’ happiness at work. Thus, ensuring good working environment and providing adequate compensation that is commensurate to the work employees do would ensure employee satisfaction and by extension employee happiness. 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Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Elsevier Ltd. Citation | Rehan Sohail Butt; Xuezhou Wen; Rana Yassir Hussain (2020). Mediated Effect of Employee Job Satisfaction on Employees’ Happiness at Work and Analysis of Motivational Factors: Evidence from Telecommunication Sector. Asian Business Research Journal, 5: 19-27. History: Received: 30 June 2020 Revised: 4 August 2020 Accepted: 16 August 2020 Published: 7 September 2020 Licensed: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License Publisher: Eastern Centre of Science and Education Acknowledgement: All authors contributed equally to the conception and design of the study. Funding: This study received no specific financial support. Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. 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