Offering competitive salaries is the most obvious way to improve employee retention, but it may not be an option for small businesses with a limited budget. If you find yourself in this situation, here are five low-cost ways you can improve your employee retention rates.
[Read more: How PEO Services Can Enhance Your Employee Experience and Retention]
Offer volunteer time off
Although 90% of Americans would like to volunteer, only 1 in 4 do. There are many reasons for this, but the biggest reason cited by people is a lack of time and an inflexible schedule. It's hard to find time to give back in between the demands of work and daily commitments.
Volunteer time off (VTO) can be a powerful benefit to offer your employees. VTO allows employees to spend a day volunteering for an organization they are passionate about without worrying about losing a day's pay.
Encouraging employees to volunteer can improve employee morale and boost engagement. One study reported that companies can reduce their turnover by 52% when employees participate in these programs.
Focus on employee recognition
Saying thank you is always free and will likely have a bigger impact than you might imagine. Organizations with an employee recognition strategy are 50% more productive and have 20% better business outcomes. The opposite is also true: Employees who feel undervalued are more likely to quit.
Anytime you recognize an employee's contribution, whether publicly or privately, make sure the feedback is genuine. Employees can tell if you're going through the motions, so the recognition you give should be thoughtful. You should also make your feedback as specific as possible.
You can recognize employees who have been with the company for specific lengths of time, like rewarding five, 10, and 20 years of employment. You can also recognize employees for going above and beyond for customers or hitting certain sales goals.
[Read more: How to Make Employees Loyal to Your Business]
Saying thank you is always free and will likely have a bigger impact than you might imagine.
Offer flexible scheduling
One of the biggest predictors of employee retention is whether a company offers flexible work arrangements. One survey showed that 31% of employees are looking for another job because they want a more flexible work schedule.
The key word here is flexibility — even making a small change to your policies around employee schedules can make a big difference. Maybe offering employees full-time remote work isn't an option, but could they work remotely one day a week?
A flexible work environment helps you attract top talent to your organization. It also makes your business more appealing to younger employees who value work-life balance.
Provide wellness benefits
Launching a wellness program is an excellent way to support the health and fitness of your employees. Wellness programs help your employees adopt healthy habits through education and support.
You could offer off-site gym memberships to employees either through a monthly stipend or wellness reimbursement. Your company could also provide stress management or nutrition education. Or you can also schedule free health screenings for your employees.
Wellness programs improve employee retention by creating a healthy and supportive environment. And according to Quest Diagnostics, successful employee wellness programs also reduce healthcare costs.
[Read more: A Guide to Employee Record Retention]
Give employees opportunities to advance
One of the most effective ways to hang onto your employees is by giving them opportunities to advance within the company. According to Pew Research, 63% of employees left their jobs in 2021 because there were no opportunities to advance within the company.
Look for opportunities to invest in your employees' training and development by sending them to conferences or investing in mentorship programs. When new jobs open up within the company, see if you can fill them with internal candidates first before looking externally.
Give your employees feedback on how they're performing and let them know if there are any opportunities for them to further their skills. For example, you could allow employees to take on short-term projects within a different area of the company. Doing so gives them an opportunity to try out a new role and see if it's a good fit.
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