How You Can Help Turn The Great Resignation Into The Great Return

From the hardest hit industries to the least affected, the pandemic has given rise to what we all now refer to as the “Great Resignation.” Spurred at first by complete shutdowns at the start of the pandemic, many employees have chosen not to return to work in many cases due to the ways they were treated pre-pandemic. Low pay, long hours, lack of appreciation, lack of health and safety concerns and more.

We are all now suffering the effects of the great resignation. We see it in higher food prices because there are fewer drivers getting the food from point A to point B. Higher food prices are reflected not only in the supermarket but in our favorite restaurants. We experience delays in getting the things we were so accustomed to having delivered in hours, days, or weeks. Now many items, especially appliances and parts are taking several months to get to our doors.

The big question is how do you keep the employees you do have motivated? How do you prevent them from burnout due perhaps to taking on multiple roles for the employees who left and have not returned? Is there a way that by focusing on these employees and treating them better, that perhaps we can begin to turn this trend around?

Make Employee Appreciation A Priority

I’ve written about this a few times since the beginning of the pandemic, but I don’t think it can be discussed too much. Employee appreciation has never been as important as it is right now. If you don’t have an employee appreciation program in place or if yours needs to be updated, I suggest you make that your top priority. Employee events, time off, small, thoughtful gifts that let employees know they are valued are statistically shown to improve morale.

This is the time to turn your attention to what I always refer to as “your first customer” and treat them with the greatest care. If you have a policy of considering your employees as your first customers, you will always treat them well. A dramatic shift in the thinking of some business owners will be required. Some restaurant owners may not have to change their thinking since there are already robots serving food – I’ve experienced this recently. However, we may have time to become more humane and keep humans teaching in our schools and helping to serve customers in retail stores if that shift in thinking happens quickly.

We Can Help

If you are launching a new or upgraded employee appreciation program, Gossett Marketing can help by creating internal promotional items, posters, and unique gift items. We have provided new employee welcome programs for those hired during quarantine and have provided motivational gifts throughout the pandemic. Let’s work together to bring qualified, motivated, loyal workers back to business and show them they are truly valued.

Give us a call and let’s discuss your employee recognition needs.