Attracting and Retaining Employees Tips on preventing turnover

Attracting and Retaining SKILLED EMPLOYEES

By CATE E. BARTON AND TYLER B. WHITE OF JACKSON LEWIS P.C.

Employee turnover presents a constant challenge for the restaurant and hospitality industry, but employers can take steps to combat it.

Turnover of staff and managerial employees makes it difficult for restaurants to establish and maintain best practices and meet company goals. Hiring and retaining skilled and conscientious workers assists employers with instilling and maintaining company values, as well as employee satisfaction, productivity and overall performance. Offering competitive compensation, engaging in diversity and inclusion efforts, effective mentoring and training and creating a path for upward mobility for promising new hires, all contribute to attracting skilled employees and encouraging them to remain with the company.

Employee retention can be difficult in the hospitality sector, where prospective employees may see working in the hotel or restaurant industry as a stepping stone rather than a career. Poor retention rates can be a source of frustration when hotels or restaurants are caught in a repeating cycle of recruiting, on-boarding and training each new employee, only to have high rates of turnover.

The nationally increasing minimum wage and growing competition for skilled employees make it essential that employers offer competitive compensation rates. However, while competitive compensation is an important tool for obtaining and retaining skilled and loyal employees, non-monetary benefits of employment can do even more to create lasting, mutually beneficial employment relationships. It is important to offer employees the opportunity to develop professionally and personally, so they feel fulfilled in their careers. Employers can do this in a variety of ways that best fit their company structure and long-term goals. 1. First, employers may consider a mentorship program for new employees. Pairing new employees with a mentor allows them to not only learn from an employee with more experience, but build meaningful relationships within the company and envision a long-term career path there. 2. Second, providing new employees with structured training and a clear path to promotion to a managerial or supervisory position can increase retention. Outlining a path to success within the company through clear goals and expectations encourages employees to view their work in the hotel or restaurant industry as a long-term career with opportunity for growth. 3. Lastly, employers can increase and maintain their number of skilled employees through diversity and inclusion efforts. These efforts have a positive impact on workplace culture, expand the pool of qualified applicants, ensure equal opportunity and encourage new employees to remain with the company. Inclusivity also lends to increased productivity: Companies with more gender and ethnic diversity consistently outperform their less diverse counterparts. Employers can implement diversity and inclusion efforts by setting diverse hiring and promotion goals, adopting and enforcing anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies and instituting manager and supervisor diversity training.

The individual employee is the most integral part of any company. Employers that take additional steps, like those outlined above, to invest in their employees can attract and retain employees who, in turn, will invest their time and dedication to their employer.