The recent COVID-19 pandemic triggered an apparent trend of employees resigning from their jobs and this simply will not go away. People are changing their occupations and fields of work, transitioning into atypical professions, taking early retirement, or even launching their own businesses.
At the same time, talent remains highly sought after. In the middle of 2022, there were 11.3 million unfilled positions in the United States alone, a significant increase to the 9.3 million in the same period in the previous year.
However, many companies in need of talent still use standard recruitment and employee retention strategies, such as pay and career prospects. These aspects are definitely significant for the most part and they remain important for a sizable percentage of ‘traditional’ workers. However, other potential employees may seek much more than that.
This behavioral shift is due to the COVID-19 outbreak which has forced an increasing number of people to reevaluate their desires in both work and life. Let’s examine the triggers behind employee churn and learn how employees could be retained.
The real reasons people are quitting their jobs
The most recent global workforce study from PwC collected information from over 52,000 employees in 44 countries. According to the survey, some of the key features signaling that an employee is on the verge of quitting are the following:
1. Low pay
Most survey participants mentioned inadequate salary as a major factor for leaving a job in 2021, particularly in combination with too many working hours. Moreover, they believed the benefits they had, such as medical insurance and paid time off, were inadequate. However, the poll indicated that for some people payment was not the only reason that would push them to search for another job. In the United States, for instance, data shows that 63% of workers consider compensation and benefits to be extremely important.
2. A scarcity of career opportunities
Another major reason why people leave their jobs is a lack of advancement prospects or, more accurately, their absence. Employees want to learn, evolve and maybe one day become team leaders, managers, or even CEOs. They want to be able to envision a future with a company. If they can’t see this opportunity, they resign and seek it with another company.
3. No respect in the workplace
The feeling of being appreciated is an important aspect of feeling valued in a workplace. Microaggressions and prejudice are just a couple of examples of disrespect. People must feel they are valuable to a team and are a part of it, that they are involved in discussions and idea generation. Previous studies have found that feeling excluded or neglected at work may have a detrimental impact on employees’ well-being, which in turn leads to a drop in their performance and ultimately, their resignation.
4. Not enough flexibility
For many workers, a good work-life balance became more vital than ever during the pandemic when the workforce shifted to the new normal. Some companies have completely accepted hybrid or remote work arrangements, while others are still sticking to the in-person connection.
In addition to the reasons mentioned in the research, it is worth adding one more, and that is bad management.
5. Poor management
Managers have a significant influence on team efficiency, but this can work both ways – for better or for worse. They are accelerators and whatever difficulties they face appear to have a cascading effect that swiftly spreads throughout their staff.
Most people have heard the phrase “people don’t quit companies, they quit bosses”. Several researchers have proved again and again that managers are one of the major reasons why people start to look for another job.
A 2022 study carried out in the UK found that the most predominant characteristics of successful managers, according to employees, are treating people with respect and listening to what they have to say.
What can companies do to keep their employees?
There is currently a structural shortage of labor due to poor salaries, an aging population, and a technological skills gap and thus there is a lack of workers available to fill all the opportunities. Even if companies succeed in keeping their workers away from competitors, they are more likely to simply reorganize the talent and increase salaries.
Good pay is necessary, and yet it’s not enough
Money is the most important aspect in keeping people. However, decent pay is not always sufficient to keep employees who value other intangible qualities too. Job fulfillment and the opportunity to be your real self at work came in second and third place respectively among workers contemplating a job move.
Top 5 tips to retain employees
These are some of the tips that organizations should bear in mind if they want to retain their valuable talent:
1. Offer a reasonable salary along with high-quality benefits
As previously mentioned, money plays an important role in keeping employees and attracting new talent and yet, in some cases, this is not enough. Employers should consider asking themselves a few questions, such as: Is the salary of our employees competitive? Do our company’s benefits (paid leave, a free weekday lunch, gym reimbursement, etc,) stack up against those of our competitors?
2. Encourage professional growth and provide educational possibilities
A talent wants to be able to learn, improve, and evolve. This means that companies should invest in helping employees and providing possibilities for their professional development.
3. Encourage flexibility and think about employees’ work-life balance
There’s no point in forcing anyone to work more and more, sometimes without any breaks because this is simply a shortcut to burnout. Companies should encourage workers to take paid time off, give their staff a say in how they complete their tasks, and incorporate hybrid and remote work.
4. Assists staff’s mental fitness
Mental fitness relates to a person’s general well-being and capacity to deal with daily challenges healthily and productively. It includes emotional, mental, and social well-being. Many firms previously believed that workers’ benefit plans should concentrate on physical well-being but, as the pandemic has demonstrated, mental fitness actually demands equal consideration.
Companies can use several strategies to improve their employees’ mental fitness, including workplace reading, coaching, and daydreaming.
What’s daydreaming in the workplace?
Daydreaming is a concept that involves facilitating employees to take breaks. Usually, workers are busy and forget to put their work on pause. As a result, they may become exhausted. Companies could implement official rules that encourage staff to take time away from their jobs. Daydreaming can be a good way to “recharge”.
5. Coaching
Coaching helps to maximize employees’ potential. Among its advantages are improved stress management and better engagement. It also helps to prevent or reduce burnout and discover a good work-life balance.
The pandemic has had a huge impact on both businesses and people. Many employees have shifted to remote work and just when everything was about to get back to normal, companies started facing what was called “the great resignation”, with most people unwilling to return to standard working hours and thus quitting their jobs.
Now companies that took their employees for granted should reconsider their position and seek various ways to attract talent and retain the employees they already have and that is anything but easy. Today, workers need not just money, but respect, fulfillment, and meaning, and companies that understand this are one step ahead of their competitors.
Final word
Today, people continue to look for job openings for a variety of reasons, the most common of which are improved working conditions, greater flexibility, and higher compensation. However, increasing the chances of finding the best job among numerous opportunities requires time and effort. DevelopmentAid offers professional services for individuals who are looking for career advancement.
If you become a member, you will have access to a wide range of job offers and opportunities in the international development sector. DevelopmentAid members can also gain access to advanced career aid tools (including a CV generation service) and the largest job board (over 8000) in the development sector.
Contact our Career Advisors to review your current portfolio and to assist you in selecting the services you require.
