Q: We’re a service company. Many of our employees are working two jobs and are part of two-income families, which means the adults in the household are stretched for time when it comes to taking care of their children. We have a fair amount of turnover as people jump jobs for a small pay increase. What can I do to decrease turnover and to help my employees?
Thoughts of the day: Build a community of resources to support the people who work for you. Put benefits in place that make it easier for employees to take care of their families in times of need. Encourage education to help people step up the income and opportunity ladder. Recognize that you”™re working with the highest unemployment class and you have a greater chance to cull through for best in class. Look for opportunities to increase productivity and share the rewards.
Find out what support services your employees need ”“ child care, elder care, food pantry, legal advice; the list goes on and on. Do a survey. Team up with nonprofit resources to provide those services. Make a donation, pay a fee and help the not-for-profit apply for a grant. Everybody wins.
Look into child care programs for pre-school and after school. Parents who can rest easy knowing their children are cared for are consistently more productive and have higher attendance rates. Negotiate a discounted rate with an existing organization. Provide space and get an even lower rate. Hire high school students to babysit, if that”™s what it takes.
Many low-wage earners need days off to care for others. Check if employees are maxing out sick and personal days. If so, increase the number of days available. Consider allowing flexible hours ”“ work longer hours for fewer days and freedom to switch schedules with co-workers.
Team up with a health care practitioner, clinic or dental service. Make routine care more accessible. See if you can get a physician, physician assistant or dentist to visit the workplace regularly to meet with people. Put an emphasis on routine care.
Run the numbers. Option one: routine wellness visits that employees and family members tap into in order to stay healthy. Option two: lose a good worker who has to stay home because of a serious illness that wasn”™t treated early enough. Option one is usually much less expensive and certainly less disruptive.
Everyone benefits when the workforce becomes more educated. Individuals hone their skills. The company has employees who are better prepared to move up. Future employees are attracted by the company”™s commitment to individual improvement. Employees who leave speak about how the company helped them build a future.
Approach a local college or technical school and propose a course. Or ask how to enroll your employees in existing programs. Most states have money to pay for training programs. Try to get education credits (CLEs) for anything your employees are doing. Be sure to give out certificates of completion for any internal training, and to record success in individual personnel files.
While overall unemployment has dropped from 12 percent to 8 percent, and for some groups to 6 percent or lower, low-wage unskilled workers are still struggling with the highest levels of unemployment. Set up continuous advertising and screening to attract and hire candidates who will be able to do the job you need, and who will value the benefits you”™re building.
As employees get focused, educated and committed to your company, apply that energy to improving productivity. Improvements in productivity should result in increased profits. Share a portion of the increased profits with the people who helped make it happen. Set up quarterly bonus pools. Establish and fund a 401k plan. Invest more in employee benefit programs.
Andi Gray is president of Strategy Leaders Inc., strategyleaders.com, a business-consulting firm that specializes in helping entrepreneurial firms grow. She can be reached by phone at (877) 238-3535. Do you have a question for Andi? Please send it to her, via email at AskAndi@StrategyLeaders.com or by mail to Andi Gray, Strategy Leaders Inc., 5 Crossways, Chappaqua, NY 10514. Visit AskAndi.com for an entire library of Ask Andi articles.
