Editors Corner

Are you concerned about employee turnover —particularly in losing your best employees? If so, do you know if your employees actually like working at your business?

According to a Global Workday report, while 34% of manufacturing employees feel engaged, a disconcerting 38% feel disengaged and 27% feel actively disengaged. The less engaged employees feel, the more likely they are to look elsewhere for a new position — a serious concern given manufacturing’s ongoing labor shortage.

The term “employee engagement” was coined by William Kahn, a professor of organizational behavior at Boston University, in the 1990s. Kahn stated that in order to feel fully engaged — employees require three things:

• Meaningfulness: A sense of purpose in one’s work

• Safety: The ability to be one’s full self in the workplace without risk or fear of negative repercussions

• Availability: The necessary energy and resources to do the work

It should always be a workplace goal to create a happy and healthy workplace environment and to provide the best possible experience to its workers. Improving employee engagement is a key part of this. And as an added bonus, employee engagement can positively impact your bottom line:

• A Gallup report shows that companies with high employee engagement saw substantially better customer engagement, higher productivity, better employee retention, fewer accidents and a 21% increase in profitability.

• Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace report also found that businesses that actively engage their employees see an 18% decrease in staff turnover.

• According to Manufacturing Digital, engaged employees have productivity rates that are 70% higher than those of non-engaged workers. They also enjoy a 78% higher safety record, 70% lower employee turnover, 86% greater customer satisfaction and 44% greater profitability.

What can you do to improve employee engagement and hence retention?

• Have a well-trained leadership team. For many employees, having the right manager can make all the difference in their overall experience. Without a leadership team that’s invested in their continued growth and success — employees may feel less engaged in their work.

• Provide regular training: Without proper training, workers struggle to complete certain tasks, understand organizational goals and meet performance expectations. Provide training resources and foster a culture of continuous learning and improvement.

• A lack of flexibility: Shopfloor employees may not be able to work from home the same way office workers do, but that doesn’t mean manufacturing managers should deprive them of flexible scheduling. In fact, flexible scheduling is proven to improve workers’ work-life balance and overall morale, both of which have a direct impact on engagement.

In closing, God bless our troops and I wish you continued business success. Running your business is much less stressful with low employee turnover.

‘WHATEVER

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TAKES’ Attitude Helped Erickson Metals Corporation Achieve 50 Years In Business

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