Shawnee Love   •  
March 22, 2010

10 days ago, I promised I would be offering ideas for improving employee retention in future articles.

Today’s blog is the first in my employee retention series and focuses on what I believe is the foundation of keeping employees. That is, getting the basics right.

I am not alone in this premise. Maslow’s theory on the Hierarchy of Needs says that we can only progress up the pyramid to higher needs after we have satisfied our most basic requirements for water, food, security, etc. And George Bernard Shaw said something similar when he noted that “…to the hungry man, food is god”.

The point is that you shouldn’t worry about employee motivation and satisfaction until you meet your employees’ basic needs at work.

So that leads me to the question, “Are you meeting your employees’ basic needs?” If you can answer “yes” to the following questions, then you have a sound and stable foundation for employee retention. Well done!

• Are your employees’ pay cheques correct?
• Are your employees paid on time?
• Are your employees safe at work?
• Do your employees get sufficient time away from work (e.g., vacations, breaks, days off, etc.)?
• Do your employees know how to do their jobs?
• Do your employees have adequate resources to do their jobs?
• Do your employees know why they do their jobs (e.g., why their jobs are important)?

If you answered “no” to any of these questions, then you know where to start. Converting a “no” to a “yes” can make a significant difference to your turnover statistics. And last time I checked, turnover costs are tracking anywhere between 30-50% for non-management staff, so even a couple of points lower on your “turnover meter” can mean a big difference to your bottom line.

Any questions or comments, drop us a line at info@lovehr.ca.