I first talked about The Great Resignation back in September of 2021, but it’s apparently still going strong.
Federal data released March 29th shows that 4.4 million people quit in February 2022 compared to 3.4 million in February of 2021.
And according to a survey by Willis Towers Watson, 53% of US employees are open to leaving their current jobs with 44% actively looking for new places to work.
Now whether employee dissatisfaction is the culprit or if it’s just a natural response to the rapid pace of overall labor market recovery, either way, keeping your top employees should be a priority for you.
Leon Ho in The Great Resignation 2022: What Can Employers Do About It? thinks one of the best ways to adapt and hold on to those good employees is to:
Lean Into Remote Work
The Willis Towers Watson survey also found that a majority of employees (58%) want to keep working remotely.
Leon has these tips to make working remotely work for both you and your employees:
- Stop micromanaging and delegate more
- Measure by results instead of hours working
- Don’t require all team members to be online at the same time
- Provide professional development opportunities
- Check in with co-workers and encourage them to connect with other employees
- Be mindful of your employees’ mental health
- Think about hiring team members from outside your geographic area
It also looks like pay is becoming a bigger factor than it originally was.
56% of those surveyed by Willis Towers Watson cited pay as a top reason they would look for a new job. With 41% saying they would leave for a 5% increase which is different than the Gallup poll I quoted back in September that said it would take more than a 20% pay raise to lure most employees away.
So also be sure to pay your employees what they are worth!
