How to Keep Employees For Your Business
Employee turnover statistics hit a new high in August when data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show a total of 4.3 million employees quit from their current employers. Most of these resignations came from the food and retail industries. However, it is reasonable to believe that other industries could be affected by drastic turnover rates sooner or later.
There’s one more reason to worry about employee turnover this year. JP Griffin Group warned back in June that there could be a “turnover tsunami” that could happen anytime in this third quarter.
Now is the best time to think about keeping your business turnover rate down. It’s better to think about how to keep your current employees than to wonder about overcoming challenges that come with hiring hourly wage employees, for instance.
Why Do Employees Resign?
Employee resignations are a normal event in workplaces. Employees normally quit due to grievances with management, or the presence of a more lucrative opportunity outside the organization. However, the pandemic has introduced new factors that could influence laborers’ decision to quit their current jobs.
For instance, the pandemic gave employees that normally work out of an office the opportunity to work from home. Now, a number of these workers are unwilling to return to the old settings and are instead seeking remote or hybrid work models post-pandemic.
COVID-19 also emboldened a huge number of employees to demand occupational safety. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics report indicates health, safety, and child care concerns as top reasons for employee resignations throughout the pandemic.
Thus, you, as a businessman, should work to address any possible concerns your employees might have and prevent a huge number of resignations moving forward. Below are a few actions that you could take as early as now to keep turnover rates low.
Raise Wages
Personal finances are a strong motivator for any employee in many cases. Try to offer higher rates than the minimum wages to your existing workers. Check in with your accountants and find ways to free some parts of your cash flow to accommodate higher salaries. This could work in some cases. However, it won’t be as effective for those who ultimately decide to seek personal growth in a greener pasture.
Prioritize Occupational Safety
As mentioned earlier, occupational safety is a major concern for employees because of the pandemic. Make your employees feel safe and taken care of within your premises. Encourage frequent sanitation of the hands and social distancing. Make the office accident-proof. These gestures go a long way towards keeping employees loyal.
Promote More Engagement with the Employees
Engagement is another important factor in keeping employees from resigning. People want to feel that they belonged and that they have a voice within the organization. There are many cases where employees decided to quit because they felt locked out of decision-making that affects them. In this case, you might want to consult with your employees in matters that directly concern them before making a decision.
Similarly, you should always be transparent with your employees about goals, concerns, and decisions. Keeping critical problems from the knowledge of your workers fosters an environment of fear and uncertainty as well as rumor-mongering. Your employees could end up misinterpreting the situation and quitting out of apprehension.
Promote Leisurely Activities
The pandemic may have limited person-to-person interaction, but that doesn’t mean you couldn’t do any teambuilding at this time. Organize leisurely activities that can be done remotely. Virtual parties are a common occurrence now since COVID-19 ravaged the entire planet. It’s safe, inexpensive, and could be as enjoyable as normal team-building activities.
The Bottom Line
The labor force in the United States has seen drastic increases in turnovers now that the landscape is slowly returning to normal. Many employees have called it quits over concerns of workplace safety and health.
Moreover, experts are seeing a huge increase in resignations looming over the horizon. Businessmen like you must think of creative and effective ways of keeping employees happy as early as now.
