Keeping employees happy is getting more complex.
Job markets are becoming increasingly less traditional, offering unique opportunities, at mass, with a tremendously high upside. For the current workforce, there always appears to be another shiny object on the horizon.
In 2022, the average career tenure for employees sat at around 4.1 years. However, this number is expected to decline over the next five years.
It’s no debate that employers have to adjust and adapt to keep their employees for longer, but how? To help answer this question, we’ve outlined five things employees cited as most important when seeking a job (in no particular order).
A Culture Fit
According to a recent survey, over a third of individuals would decline an offer for their ideal job if the culture wasn’t a fit.
Culture is not only a force multiplier for organizations but workers as well. A positive, encouraging work environment can make up a lot of lost ground by offering slightly less than competitive wages. People want to work where they feel happy and are less likely to leave when they feel valued and connected to their place of work.
Developing a good company culture can be challenging. For some helpful tips, read this article.
Flexibility
In the last ten years, workers have focused more on achieving a healthier work-life balance. According to a recent Gallup poll, work-life satisfaction and greater personal well-being were considered “very important” to 61 percent of employees.
By offering greater flexibility, employers can help their workers avoid burnout and job fatigue, which can drastically increase productivity in the long run.
Flexibility can be offered in many forms, such as PTO, work-from-home accommodations, paid leave, etc. However, it’s important to have expectations clearly defined and communicated to employees. Flexibility should be justified. Frequent vacations, extended breaks, or a remote work environment will make far less sense if work isn’t getting done. Once the proper balance is struck, flexible working conditions can benefit both employer and employee immensely.
Autonomy
Workplace autonomy is very important to most of today’s workforce– especially seasoned professionals.
When an employee is competent and experienced at what they do, it can be frustrating to have multiple tiers of approval sitting above them. It’s even more frustrating when less informed overseers limit their outputs.
While metrics should continuously be tracked and accountability should exist, trust is also crucial in any employee/employer relationship. Employees will eventually leave if they don’t feel trusted and valued enough to make and execute decisions within their realm of responsibility.
Job Security
According to Gallup, about half of workers are looking for a job with more stability than they currently have.
No one welcomes the possibility of being laid off during uncertain, turbulent times.
It’s up to the employer to paint a realistic picture of stability during the hiring process and beyond. If this isn’t done, the result can be increased turnover.
Significant Increase in Pay/Benefits
Using the Consumer Price Index Inflation Calculator, we can see that $120 today has the purchasing power of $100 in 2019. That’s a 20 percent increase. That’s a greater total increase than was experienced from 2010 to 2019.
In short, living costs are increasing at an accelerated rate, and employees are expecting wages to follow suit.
Employers will continue receiving more petitions for raises as life becomes more expensive overall. For employers that can’t accommodate, retaining employees will be more difficult.
Takeaways
The global workforce is evolving, and employee expectations are changing.
Organizations will have to be agile in order to combat troubling turnover trends, maintain a healthy company culture, and meet employee needs.
We hope this article was helpful. For more information on how background screening can help in your efforts to find and retain dependable employees, visit us online.
