There are many documented benefits to a highly engaged workforce including increased productivity, a more positive company culture, and perhaps most importantly: lower turnover. In this era when more people are exiting the workforce than ever, the competition for capable and dedicated employees is fierce.
Engagement and turnover:
Gallup reports that companies with low employee engagement scores are likely to suffer the most. Businesses with highly engaged employees (in the top 20%) can reduce turnover by as much as 31%-51%. Because it is much more costly to replace and train a valued employee than to retain one, employee engagement has a huge impact on turnover.
Engagement and safety:
Engaged employees are emotionally invested in their work and in the success of the company. Engaged employees go out of their way to make sure things are done correctly – and safely. How important is employee engagement to the safety of your workplace? It’s VERY important to Molson Coors:
A recent SHRM study involving employees of Molson Coors found that highly engaged employees were 5 times less likely to have a safety incident than non-engaged employees, and 7 times less likely to have a lost-time safety incident. By strengthening employee engagement, Molson Coors saved over $1.7 million in safety costs in just one year.
What the labor shortage really means:
The COVID era has brought many workplace issues to light. Employees had time to reassess their values. Those in low-paying jobs with difficult hours moved on. Two-income families had the opportunity to discover that they might be fine with one income, especially given savings in childcare, commuting, clothing, and meals, etc.
Forbes looked at reasons for the labor shortage and reports that employees want 3 main things:
- Better wages and benefits
- Better working conditions
- Better work-life balance and flexible schedules
Working conditions can be defined as anything that impacts the environment. Are employees recognized for their contributions? Is there a culture of recognition where peers and management both participate? Feeling appreciated and valued is especially important to today’s employees and an effective reward and recognition program is on every list of ways in which to engage and retain employees.
Best practices in increasing employee engagement:
- Institute a formal program to reward and recognize achievement
- Involve employees in the process
- Set clear goals, guidelines, and timelines
- Align individual and team goals with company goals
- Make sure the reward system is fair
- Communicate, communicate, communicate
- Brand your program; make it interesting
- Provide the tools and training that employees need to perform
- Use tangible non-cash rewards, chosen with employee input
- Measure results and share them with participants
Employee engagement has a significant impact on turnover, which in turn has a significant impact on safety. It’s important to partner with an experienced firm that can ensure that your incentive or reward and recognition programs will be effective, will identify the employee audience that can impact performance, and that your program goals are achieved.
To learn more about how engagement can decrease turnover and increase safety, watch our highly attended webinar:
