Who Can Stop This Unstoppable Great Resignation?

What Can Organizations Do to Retain Staff? 

While strong leadership and management, quality products and services, and impeccable brand reputation are quintessential for an organization's success, employees play the greatest role in the long-term sustainability of businesses. Businesses that wish to survive the resignation storm should quickly respond to the needs of employees. 

Equity Theory: Keep the Input and Output Balanced and Fair

Primarily developed from the works of J.Stacy Adams, a behavioral scientist and workplace psychologist, the Equity theory is a popular framework supported by research to guide employee perceptions towards their organizations. The theory builds its premise on the thesis that Employees who feel undermined, unfairly treated, and poorly rewarded will leave their organizations. 

Employers need to balance input and output to unleash higher satisfaction levels from employees. Inputs from employees such as initiatives, hard work, commitment to organizational goals, skills, adaptability, teamwork, etc., should be balanced by outputs from employers such as increased salaries, perks, flexible working environment, appreciation, promotion, job security, etc.   

Another aspect of equity theory is the fair distribution of resources and creating equal opportunities and benefits for all irrespective of any difference based on gender, bias, or demographics. Maintaining equity in everything that the organization does keeps employees motivated and satisfied. The rising divide in wages, automation, and the pandemic compelled employees to seek organizations that provide upward mobility. Businesses that want to save their workforce need to act boldly, urgently, and decisively. Employers should start eliminating the gender-based pay gap (by offering equal pay to both genders), skill-based pay gap (by reskilling employees), and demographic-based pay inequality (by bringing standard pay policies across regions) on an immediate basis. 

Build Safe Office Environment

OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Act), USA, makes employers responsible for creating a safe office environment wherein employees can work without the threat of death due to infection or any other physical harm.(9) Proactive and concerned employers should facilitate the employees' in getting vaccinated. Employers can provide surgical masks, sanitizers, immunity-boosting food, etc., to make employees feel safe. Employers need to adhere to standards aimed at preventing ATDs (Aerosol Transmissible Diseases) that spread via air. Also, create policies that make employees feel more secure- such as quick notifications if someone tests positive in the staff, mandatory disinfectant processes, response and shutdown protocols, configured seating arrangement to ensure social distancing, temperature checks on arrival, etc.  Research also suggests that healthy buildings can stop COVID19 spread and make employees feel more secure.(10) 

Offer Flexibility and Hybrid Work Options (WFH/WFO)

Organizations should understand that during the lockdown or quarantine period, the productivity of employees didn't go down, and therefore, forcing full-time office models in the aftermath of peak pandemic is not justified. Companies can offer hybrid work options with three days in the office and two days at home or vice versa. Losing employees over rigid policies will not work in favor of employers.(11) Organizations cannot continue with the one-size-fits-all mentality anymore. When the pandemic started, organizations spent huge amounts of money to facilitate remote work and bought software programs to set up remote work protocols. 

The work continued due to employee compliance. Employees were quick to adapt to the new patterns, and many sacrificed their personal spaces to convert them into office stations. However, now employers are expecting employees to hurry back to onsite locations. This could result in a disaster. Employees must be treated with a personalized approach, and organizations must consider the unique needs of each employee before fixing work options. Hybrid work options should be given to employees where they can choose to work from home or from the office as and when required by them. The IT department must be rolled in to make the working experience easier, secure, and more enjoyable for employees. Computing environments for both home and office must be powered by VPNs, RDPs, and VDIs to create a similar working environment at both places.(12)

Transform Company Culture:

Organizations need to facilitate company culture by involving leadership, management, and employees in the process. The goal is to make the workplace better for employees. Thriving the great resignation requires organizations to adopt an introspective attitude towards their policies, procedures, behaviors, and commitments towards the employees. Businesses should strive to create an inclusive work environment where employees are considered as assets and not liabilities. 

Plan for Regular Team-Building Exercises:

Activities such as virtual team building, games, happy hours, etc., can help employees boost their moods and eliminate stress. Activities are more essential with remote workers. Activities with fellow teammates act as positive reinforcement and build a sense of shared identity and goals.“Team building activities should be planned, designed, executed, and monitored in such a way that will enhance open communication, members’ collaboration, and flexibility in order to create effective cohesion and synergy to enhance team effectiveness and performance.”(13)

Educate Employees for COVID Policies, Protocols, and Safety Procedures

Employers should train employees to follow COVID-related protocols, safety standards, and policies.  In the event of a COVID attack, good safety habits and training can go a long way in protecting employees. Preparing employees on the COVID protocols and safety procedures is essential to ensure a safe and secure workplace. All employees should be trained on basic COVID protocol to keep themselves and their colleagues safe. If you don't want to lose your employees to a COVID attack, make sure they're fully educated about how to stay safe.

Today’s workforce is becoming increasingly diverse. This diversity brings new perspectives and ideas to the table, which can help your business grow. The different perspectives also mean that employees come from different backgrounds with different beliefs, especially in regards to what they know about workplace safety. Ensuring that your workforce is accredited for COVID compliance is imperative to ensure the safety of those who work in your facility.    

Gratuity Benefits

70.1% of employees surveyed by GoodFirms reported that their organization doesn’t provide gratuity benefits to them. Offering gratuity benefits can help create a more enjoyable work environment for your employees. Gratuity can be offered through many different methods.  From cash given at the end of each shift, food cards provided on a monthly basis, or an annual bonus at the end of the year, Gratuity offerings have been shown to incentivize higher productivity and performance in employees.      

Sufficient Maternity/Paternity Leaves  

30.7% of employees said their organization doesn’t provide sufficient maternity/paternity leaves.  Parental leaves are an essential part of how we care for one another as humans. It is important to provide employees with sufficient maternity and/or paternity leave so they can bond with their children. Providing employees with adequate family leave has many benefits for both employer and employee. 

Easy Leave Policy 

23.8% of employees do not enjoy an easy leave policy. Offering leave whenever required by employees is a great way to support them. Easy leave policy assures employees that they can take time off work whenever they have to meet personal, family, or other related obligations or whenever they have other emergencies for medical purposes, travel, etc.         

Provide Childcare Facility

Only 9.6% of organizations provide childcare facilities to employees. WFH can be a great option for many professionals. However, it does not solve the childcare issue. There's a greater need for child care services that offer convenience and flexibility to parents. Providing a daycare facility will reduce stress, help your employees get more done, and it can help with retention and recruitment efforts. If you provide childcare, you'll attract and retain talented workers who might otherwise be turned off by the logistical challenges of child care. This is beneficial for both you and your employees in the long run. Building an onsite daycare center is costly and time-consuming but necessary if you want to attract top talent because many parents prefer this option.  Providing childcare services to your employees is an investment in your company's future.  

Transparent Salary Structure:

Organizations need to be transparent about salary structure and compensation benefits. HR managers should clearly define salary adjustments for remote workers, variations based on locations, etc. The “Transparent salary structure” concept leads to a more trusting work environment with better productivity, creativity, and collaboration. Employers often have a pay range in mind for each position but are reluctant to disclose that information with their employees. The lack of transparency in salary structures is problematic because it leaves people guessing about how much they should be expecting in return for their work. 

This is because it provides transparency and fairness in the workplace and allows everyone to know what their peers and superiors make. It makes it easier for employees to find out if they are being paid unfairly or should be negotiating for more money. When employees understand how much they earn, they feel appreciated and valued by the company, which leads to increased employee satisfaction, engagement, and productivity.  

Hire Gig Workers

The loss of an employee is always a setback for the company, but it can be even more damaging when there's no replacement in the pipeline.  The solution to this problem lies in hiring gig workers, which are people who provide services on a freelance basis. Many full-time employees have foregone social security benefits, retirement provisions, etc., and have turned to contractual work. As the traditional workforce is changing, the gig economy is becoming more popular. Companies should open jobs for gig workers to fight their great resignation problem.

Deploy Retention Strategies

Transactional relationships with employees will last only till they receive their paycheck. However, relational association lasts beyond office time and paychecks. Employees that feel connected with companies stay longer with them. 

• Organizations should drive value for the long term
• Conduct regular one-on-one meetings, plan for a monthly review party, regular video calls for engaging employees positively                     
• Increase recruitment budget, invest in recruitment technologies such as recruitment software, etc. 
• Provide employee benefits such as life insurance, medical insurance, free transportation from office to home, training and development, career growth opportunities, paid leaves, accommodation facilities,  etc. 
• Evolve operating models to lower employee stress and burden