DOI: 10.7763/IPEDR. 2012. V55. 1 Factors Constraining Labour Productivity: Case Study of Turkmenistan Serdar Durdyev 1 , Syuhaida Ismail 11 and Nooh Abu Bakar 1 1 Razak School of Engineering and Advanced Technology, University Technology Malaysia, International Campus, Jalan Semarak, 54100, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Abstract. The aim of this study is to identify the key factors constraining labour productivity of Turkish contractors in Turkmenistan based on the views of project manager consultants, contractors and subcontractors. Qualitative data collected through literature review formed the basis for questionnaire surveys conducted among the target populations. In-depth literature review revealed 28 labour productivity constraint factors, however after the reliability test, corrected scale of the questionnaire merely consisted 24 of the factors. Before the factor analysis factors were ranked according to their mean ratings. Recommendations were provided for improving construction labour productivity of Turkish contractors in the construction industry of Turkmenistan for addressing the labour productivity constraints. Keywords: Labour Productivity, Turkmenistan, Project Management, Construction . 1. Introduction Productivity is one of the important aspects for the companies in the construction industry, which helps for survival or growth. Improvement in the productivity of the construction industry is therefore of critical importance considering its significant contribution to the GDP. Furthermore, improvement in the productivity of the construction industry has a positive impact on all other industries, as well as on the national economy 1. For instance, according to 2, 10% escalation in construction productivity would annually save about £1 billion. There are various critical problems facing the Turkish contractors in the construction industry of Turkmenistan, but one of the most significant according to the authors points of view, is low productivity 3. Therefore, as part of the aim of this study, factors constraining construction productivity of Turkish contractors in Turkmenistan are going to be provided. This provision allows Turkish construction companies to focus in order to achieve a remarkable improvement in the construction productivity. On the other hand, resources could be optimally disbursed addressing the few causes responsible for the significant portion of the construction productivity issues. To this end, factors constraining construction productivity were first identified via a review of related literature, and recommendations for enhancing the construction productivity level of the Turkish contractors were provided based on the statistical analyses of the chosen factors. 2. Literature Review Productivity is an effective utilization of the resources to achieve set objectives. Increase in productivity correlates well with increased profitability, competitiveness, achievement of key stakeholder propositions as well as long-term growth and sustainability of a company, an industry and a nation 4. This study is not focused on defining productivity, but on the factors constraining labour productivity of Turkish contractors in the construction industry of Turkmenistan. However, to move ahead, the research thrusts need to be anchored on a contextual interpretation of productivity. European Cooperation defines productivity as “the quotient obtained by dividing output by one of the factors of production”. Or, in another words, “the same as efficiency, which is defined as the ratio output energy divided by input energy”. On the other hand, defini tion of productivity was made by 5 as “the quantity of work produced per man-hour, equipment-hour, or crew-hour”.  E-mail address: syuhaida_ismail@yahoo.com 1