Employee Turnover: The Fundamental Long-Term Shift In The Future of Work

Employee turnover is not a fad in today's environment. Instead, employers are seeing a significant shift from the norm to something that has become the norm- high employee turnover.

New job seekers choose to forego their employment to find new opportunities for better-paying wages, career advancement, and quality of life.

Employers will need to adjust to this increased new normal by identifying ways to formally address employee retention and developing meaningful strategies to retain employees while focusing on company culture, job satisfaction, career advancement, and pathways opportunities in the job market.

Employers realize what they thought was a fad is now the new normal, so we will discuss what this future of work shift is and what employment retention strategies companies can deploy to boost employee retention through the roll-out of employee engagement programs that focus on job satisfaction, employee morale, and employee development.

The fundamental shift in the future of work

Companies recognize the high level of employee turnover and the rising costs related to employee turnover. However, there is an ever-growing concern that companies will face significant and crippling consequences due to this major shift if this trend continues.

This includes reducing efficiency and increased operational costs, such as recruitment fees, benefits, training, mentoring, and onboarding costs. Companies must understand the significance of this trend before these changes are too far along to turn around.

Companies must align their strategies with the growing new normal of a more engaged and well-motivated workforce.

Employee turnover is not a fad

Employee turnover is not a fad in today's environment. Instead, employers are seeing a significant shift from the norm to something that has become the norm- high employee turnover.

As a result, companies are discovering that employee turnover and overall employee engagement are not only the cost of doing business. It's a strategic imperative. As a result, enterprises are now experimenting with tools and strategies to measure employee engagement and understand how to improve their culture.

Taking employee satisfaction seriously cannot be just lip service, and we must view even this in its proper context. The key to employee satisfaction and happiness is engagement and a positive employee experience that leads to better business results.

Why do employees leave?

There are many reasons that employees leave their jobs, but among the top reasons cited are:

• Employees quit due to job dissatisfaction or dissatisfaction with company culture. Employee turnover has reached epidemic proportions, representing the biggest problem facing employers. Half of the employees who quit said they left because they didn't enjoy their work.

• Employees leave because they can't meet employer's expectations. According to popular belief, if employees feel capable of accomplishing their job requirements, they will work more efficiently. However, employees are not always aware of what these expectations are.

Furthermore, workplace issues such as employee dissatisfaction, unrealistic expectations, training, and budgeting may contribute to poor employee retention.

The new normal of employee turnover

According to CareerBuilder.com, 65 percent of job seekers cite a lack of company recognition as one of the main reasons for job searches. This lack of company recognition has, in turn, increased employee turnover.

The demographics of the workforce are changing as baby boomers retire, however this creates new opportunities for employers to develop and embrace new workforce talent strategies to attract new talent.

Companies now have an opportunity to take a proactive approach to retention by addressing the shift in job seekers to a new norm of unemployment. For companies to keep pace with this change, they must be prepared to recruit and retain the best talent possible through traditional methods such as job fairs, virtual events, social media, email marketing, employee referrals, and internal reviews.

Why employers see the increase in employee turnover

Job seekers now have a greater selection of occupations to pick from than they did a few years ago when they were limited to traditional or lower-wage employment.

Employees are also noticing that the traditional lower-wage job is not a good career choice anymore. People want to be challenged, feel valued, increase their quality of life. Job seekers can achieve this by acquiring a higher-paying job with more prospects for growth opportunities.

When employees have to face competition for a job in that lower-wage category or for an opportunity at a higher wage position, they would rather look outside of their current employer for an opportunity that offers them a bigger future.

That being said, employers need to re-think their job retention strategies. Companies that understand the need to shift their employee engagement strategies have taken steps to address the issue by making their employees a priority.

What employers can do to address this new normal

The first step in addressing the new normal is to get familiar with the dynamics that are driving and leading to the increased employee turnover in the workforce. There is an inevitable state of flux that exists for any company that hires in today's global economy.

The global marketplace is changing the game- where work is done, how work is done, the digitalization of work, and a move towards flexibility. The employee turnover rate is going to be affected because of these dynamics, so the employer needs to seek a way to make retention strategies easy to implement.

One of the key steps to addressing turnover is to conduct a workforce plan. Start with setting a strategic direction. Analyze your workforce and evaluate where the gaps are and where the potential is to capitalize. Then develop an action plan, put it into action, and monitor, evaluate, and adapt as required.

Employee retention strategies

Have you ever witnessed someone you really like suddenly leaving your company?