IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS ON EMPLOYEE-PERCEIVED PRODUCTIVITY IN THE APPAREL INDUSTRY OF SRI LANKA

Abstract

The apparel industry is one of Sri Lanka's biggest sectors, making a significant contribution to both employment and economic growth. Employee roles and industrial processes are changing because of rapid technology breakthroughs, including Automation and Robotics, Digital tools and software, Smart wearable technology, and Big Data. The influence of these technologies on employee-perceived productivity, which is the employees' self-evaluation of how well they perform their jobs, is examined in this study. 130 workers, including supervisors, quality inspectors, administrative personnel, and machine operators from five of the apparel firms in the Colombo area, participated in a quantitative, cross-sectional study. Every variable was measured using a five-point Likert scale, which was modified from well-established literature. Descriptive statistics, multiple regression, and correlation analysis were used in SPSS to analyse the data. The results show that employee-perceived productivity is greatly and favorably impacted by automation and robots, smart wearable technologies, and digital tools and software, with automation having the most impact. However, big data revealed no significant correlation, indicating a low level of integration into day-to-day operations. The report provides managers in the Sri Lankan apparel industry with useful insights by highlighting the strategic significance of matching labor capabilities with technology investments to improve operational efficiency and employee engagement.