7 operational aspects that can improve service employee retention

In industries where the competition for skilled employees is fierce, such as service companies, employee turnover can be a concern. Given that the task at hand is similar from one company to another, a slight increase in salary or access to shifts closer to home may be enough to change employers. Knowing that employee changeover can be costly, it is often better to invest in methods to improve these aspects of working conditions than to accept these costs, especially in environments where the competition is intense and profit margins are low.

Defined shift workers, as much as managers, are looking for a more valuable relationship with their employer than the contractual arrangement of exchanging work time for pay. Nowadays, a relationship of respect, where the listening and understanding of each other’s needs, is necessary. Meeting the employee’s needs and preferences as much as possible can make a big difference in his or her commitment to the company. Here are the operational aspects that are the easiest to adjust and that will create a sense of control for the employee:

Availability

In order to ensure a good balance between work and family, employees need to be able to block certain time slots to make personal commitments and plan activities that will keep their morale up. By making it easier to manage availability, it is possible to attract and maintain part-time employees, whether they are students, parents, or workers who hold multiple jobs.

Communicating schedules in advance

To promote work-family balance, the employer must allow employees to set aside time when they are not available for work. It is therefore essential to communicate the schedule as soon as possible so that the employee can organize his or her personal life as he or she wishes. Of course, in service companies, schedules are often subject to change, whether it is due to an absence, or a variation in the need for labor. Since these situations are unavoidable, the employer has no choice but to communicate the changes quickly, while respecting employees' availability, to ensure that working conditions remain as good as possible.

Location of contracts

In the majority of service companies, employees do not work from the head office, but on multiple contracts in various locations. As a result, the attractiveness of a job can vary greatly depending on the proximity of the contracts that are given. Considering the distance between an employee’s home and the assignments they are given can be difficult to do manually, but some tools can make the task much easier. This can prevent an employee from leaving the company to go work for a competitor who offers him an equivalent salary, but contracts closer to his home.

Fast and smooth processing of absence and vacancy requests

The unexpected can happen to anyone. In the majority of cases, an employee who is sick, who needs to be away from work or who will be a few hours late needs confirmation from his or her employer as soon as possible. We’ve all been in this situation before, uneasy about the complications we’ve just created and a little stressed at the thought of putting their team in a difficult situation. This scenario is easier for everyone when the employee has an accurate way to pass on the information. He will have the assurance that, despite the unexpected, he has handled the situation in the right way and will maintain a good ongoing relationship with his employer.

Payment for hours actually worked

While employees seek to have a partnership that goes beyond the contractual agreement, this arrangement must be respected, without fault. Payment for actual worked hours is necessary to maintain the loyalty of the worker and is desirable to both parties. Employers do not want to pay too many hours and employees do not want to work for free. Thus, automatic collection of arrival and departure times can eliminate any possibility of confusion and ensures transparency, which reassures both employers and employees.

Access to self-service tools

In order to meet most of the above requirements, employers can equip themselves with self-serve tools. These tend to empower employees, make them feel that they are being listened to and in control of their daily work life. They will facilitate access to information for everyone, reducing delays in communication and ensuring a sense of fairness since all requests are made in the same way and recorded accurately.

A Sense of Fairness

In the end, allowing employees to feel a sense of fairness, whether in the distribution of shifts, the treatment of hours worked or the acceptance of vacations, creates a healthy environment that encourages loyalty. When communication with managers and the balance between work and personal life are both made easy and manageable, surprising results can be observed on the quality of life of employees, and ultimately, on their commitment to the company.

In conclusion, in order to remain loyal to their employers, workers must have a certain amount of control over their schedule, as well as a sense of listening and fairness in order to maintain a positive attitude towards their job. Although it may seem complex to consider all these aspects and maintain a good level of efficiency in operations, the technological tools available to managers now make it possible to do so without increasing management time. We can often think that a high turnover rate is normal in certain industries since it has always been the case. However, since employee expectations have evolved, job opportunities are multiplying and technological tools now allow managers to adapt, why accept the status quo if it is not to our advantage.