In the last year and a half, millions of employees from multiple sectors around the world have joined a mass exodus from the workplace. Many have tried explaining the mass exodus, but reports indicate it may be due to inadequate salaries, limited career advancement, poor work-life balances, general unhappiness with management or the company and numerous other reasons.
This so-called Great Resignation, spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic, has turned employment into a worker’s market. TikTok users have coined phrases such as “quiet quitting” and “act your wage” as employees find community with others who don’t feel properly valued or appreciated by their workplaces.
As employees decide what’s right for them, employers are having to reconsider what actually makes their company worth working for. If you feel like your business may be at risk of losing top talent, or you have already begun losing your best workers to the Great Resignation, it is probably time to consider some employee retention strategies.
In our series of 15 effective strategies to boost employee job satisfaction and help you hold on to your best workers, here is our Fourth topic on our list of key retention strategies for businesses.
Encourage and promote a good work-life balance—not just for your employees, but for yourself, too.
The pandemic drastically changed how employees value work, and more and more workers cite work-life balance as a major reason they consider new jobs or the reason they have refused opportunities. That work-life balance could come in several gorms such as remote work, hybrid working, flexible scheduling or reduced workdays, or simpler acts such as encouraging employees not to check email or answer work questions via phone unless at work or on the job.
Respecting employees’ time away from work is key to maintaining a healthy working relationship with them, and in many countries, it is becoming law that managers cannot contact staff after hours, so turn this into a positive.
Reducing burn out by finding the best work life balance for your employees will go a long way towards reducing staff turnover, improving productivity and delivering greater customer service, all of which will have a positive impact on your business.
What are you doing to improve your employees work life balance?
Tony Delaney, CEO Brownie Points
