Human resources professionals and their senior teams are keenly aware that turnover comes at a high cost. Employee turnover also has a rolling effect throughout any company. In healthcare especially, losing employees has the effect of greater works burdens, less favorable scheduling and low morale. HR departments are left with the task of managing and improving turnover.
As in most projects, the first step in solving the problem is understanding it. Many employers will either create a short survey that they try to get in front of exiting employees. Others will schedule exit interviews. The problem with these solutions is that they are time-consuming and the data is difficult to capture. In addition, the participation rates are low, the responses are not secure and the respondents often do not want to tell all to someone from the company they are leaving. As importantly, these processes may not flag important issues like harassment and intimidation.
Your employees–including the exiting employees–are your best source of data about your company.
In the last 20 years, we’ve worked with over 80 healthcare organizations to improve their employee retention and work environments by capturing key, actionable data. We also have over 25 years of normative (also known as a benchmark) data that has been collected through ExitRight® our flagship product.
Based on the data we’ve collected regarding 12 controllable turnover causes, the top 5 most important reasons for employee turnover in the healthcare space are:
- Supervision and management
- Scheduling and hours
- Workload and excessive job demands
- Compensation and pay
- Feeling recognized, appreciated, and respected
1. Supervision & Management
It’s no secret that healthcare can be a demanding field. From long hours to high stress levels, there are many factors that can lead to employee turnover. One of the most important, though often overlooked, is supervision. When employees feel supported and valued by their supervisors, they are more likely to be satisfied with their jobs. On the other hand, when employees feel micromanaged or belittled, it can lead to unhappiness and eventually a decision to leave. In order to retain good employees, it’s important for healthcare organizations to create a supportive and positive environment from the top down. By fostering open communication and showing appreciation for a job well done, supervisors can play a vital role in keeping turnover rates low.
2. Scheduling & Hours
Healthcare workers have some of the busiest and most demanding schedules of any profession. They often work long hours, including overnight shifts, and are constantly on the move. This can be very stressful and makes it difficult to maintain a work-life balance. As a result, healthcare employee turnover is high, as workers leave the profession in search of jobs with better hours and more manageable workloads. This is a major problem for healthcare organizations, as it leads to higher staffing costs and a shortage of qualified personnel. To reduce turnover, healthcare organizations need to focus on creating better working conditions for their employees. This includes implementing flexible scheduling, providing additional break times, and offering competitive pay and benefits.
3. Workload & Excessive Job Demands
Employees in the healthcare industry often feel like they are being asked to do too much with too little. This can lead to burnout, and eventually, these employees may decide to leave their jobs. In addition, many healthcare employees feel like they are not being paid enough for the hours they are working. This can also lead to dissatisfaction and a desire to find a new job.
4. Compensation & Pay
In a recent study, nearly half of respondents said they would leave their current job if they didn’t see any opportunity for advancement. This is not surprising, given that most people want to feel like they are progressing in their career. When there are no opportunities for promotion, it can create a sense of stagnation and cause employees to start looking elsewhere. Healthcare organizations need to be aware of this and make sure that they are offering their employees opportunities to grow and develop. Otherwise, they will continue to lose talented staff members.
5. Recognition, Appreciation, and Respect
One of the main reasons why healthcare employees leave their jobs is because they don’t feel appreciated. Between long hours, demanding patients, and constant stress, it’s easy to feel like a cog in the machine. When you’re not feeling respected or valued, it’s only natural to start looking for a position elsewhere. There are a few things employers can do to help alleviate this problem:
- Take the time to get to know your employees and their individual strengths.
- Make sure to express appreciation for a job well done, whether it’s through a casual conversation or a more formal recognition system.
- Avoid creating a hostile work environment; unhealthy competition and backstabbing only serve to further devalue employees.
- By taking these steps, employers can help create a more positive work environment and reduce turnover.
Conclusion
Since we first published this data in 2012, workload and job demands have risen in importance, while the need to feel recognized, appreciated and respected has shifted down two spots, industry-wide. Why? First, we believe that the workforce shortage has forced healthcare companies specifically to re-examine their policies and practices. Second, the changing workforce, including the differences in priorities between generations, has caused a re-prioritization of what it means to be an “employer of choice.”
Our data shows that 56% of respondents listed those five causes as reasons for leaving. Some turnover causes that fell below the top five reasons are benefits, training, job security, and work rules and policy, to name a few. When employers know the sentiment and priorities for their employees, they can make smarter decisions about improving their organization overall.
Give Your Team the Data They Need
Our platform’s benchmarks for healthcare show that 80% of turnover is caused by what we call Controllable Factors that can be, you guessed it, controlled by the employer.
Turnover represents a significant cost to every business and significant amounts of time for HR teams. How much is it costing your organization? Check out our free-to-use Cost of Turnover Calculator to find out.
We give you the data so your retention improvement efforts can be focused on the facts instead of assumptions. With HSD Metrics, your company’s HR team can spend less time gathering research and more time acting on problems. Would you like to learn more or schedule a free demo? Contact us, we’re here to help.
