Lowering Employee Turnover During “The Great Resignation”

Strategies to Reduce Employee Turnover

The last few years have seen a sea of change in the business world. Throughout the shift to remote work, soaring inflation, and what has been dubbed ‘The Great Resignation’, businesses and companies were forced to be nimble and creative to maintain growth, and attract and retain a talented workforce. The transition back to the office was an arduous one, and the U.S. saw a resignation rate of 2.4 percent in March of 2022 – the highest recorded during this period in the last 20 years. This rate has held steady throughout the summer, and companies are performing triage to keep people working.

It takes significantly longer to recruit and train new employees than it does for a current employee to turn in their two weeks. With trends like “soft-quitting” (employees quietly finishing up current projects and then simply not returning to work) on the rise, companies are in the position of needing to step up their game to retain current talent. 

Reasons for Employee Turnover

When considering strategies for reducing turnover, we must examine the “why” of turnover. Why are employees leaving in the first place?

• Statistics show that there were around 6 million fewer resignations over the last two years than the job market would expect to see. One of the primary reasons for this is attributed to the idea of “sheltering in place”. The pandemic represented too many unknowns for employees to feel comfortable leaving their jobs, so they waited it out to see what would happen. When things felt more settled, employees who had been waiting to leave, left. 
• It’s usually true that the cost of leaving a job outweighs the cost of staying, but this ratio has shifted recently for workers, as employers are working towards becoming more attractive to the workforce in an effort to retain loyal employees.
• The pandemic enabled many employees to save money, pay off debt, and reduce expenses, giving them more security and flexibility to leave the workplace. 
• Employee burnout, the reigning cause behind resignations, and the stress of inflation, combined with the ongoing political and financial unrest, was a sure recipe for turnover. 

Strategies for Retention

So, what’s an employer to do? 

• Incentivize loyalty – Our most recent blog outlines ways in which you can financially incentivize your employees to increase retention. Salary increases, comprehensive benefits packages, and bonuses are all on the table. What other benefits could you offer? Paying down student debt, financing long-term savings, or other creative ways to take the issue of compensation out of the equation will go a long way towards maintaining a loyal workforce. 
• Remain flexible – We’ve previously outlined some of the reasons that remote work remains an attractive option to most employees. Work/life balance, higher efficiency, and fewer workplace aggressions meant that employees were living their best, more productive lives. It’s no wonder that returning to the office was a factor in the ‘Great Resignation’. With more companies offering flexible or remote work options, there’s very little incentive for employees to remain in a position that requires a 9 – 5 presence. 
• Provide Opportunity – Employees don’t want to feel stagnant, and after two years in a holding pattern, if employers aren’t giving employees the means to grow personally and professionally – they’re out the door. Make sure you’re providing paths to promotions, offering skill-building opportunities, or supporting personal growth through mental health initiatives. 

With a rise in anti-work sentiment and the plain fact that the bottom line and growth of a business are not important to most consumers, employers must shift to a pattern of employee support and community building to maintain a successful business. 

You can enable your employees to learn, grow, and develop personally and professionally when you prioritize retention.

For additional tools and strategies on how to partner with your employees to co-create an engaged and passionate workforce, click here to download the Employee Engagement guide.

If you are ready to enhance employee engagement and build a more connected, deeply invested workforce, start now! Click here to schedule a time to talk.

Can we help your team with our Employee Engagement services? Learn more at https://www.workingsimply.com/employee-engagement/

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