Employee Scheduling Methods Cause Attrition—What You Can Do About It

September 22, 2021 | 398 views

Employee Scheduling Methods Cause Attrition—What You Can Do About It
Employee Scheduling Methods Cause Attrition—What You Can Do About It

It’s not news that hiring and keeping hourly employees was particularly difficult in the last year and a half. First, it was the pandemic and immediate drops in revenue that made us lay off workers or cut their hours. When we were ready to hire them back, we discovered that “economic incentives” like unemployment hindered our businesses’ abilities to rehire and fulfill demand. And now, we see that the time spent working from home (or not working at all) changed priorities for many workers. It has been a rougher ride than usual for managers who need employees to stick around.

Typically, employees will leave because they can make more money somewhere else. That hasn’t changed—it’s just that lately, unemployment benefits have been the competitive rate rather than a better-paying employer down the street. Once we do get our employee staffing levels up, we will have to maintain them by doing more than paying higher wages, raising our prices, and contributing to inflation.

While money is a high priority for employees, the pandemic made them question how they spend their days. As managers, we must work more closely than ever with our staff on their schedules. Before the pandemic, the inability to control their schedules was the reason for quitting 10% of the time. Now that people have enjoyed more flexibility with their time, the demand for intelligent and collaborative scheduling will be higher.

Invest in Automation

Many managers are still scheduling hourly employees manually, juggling availability, posting hours, and calling no-show employees who never saw the schedule. Manual administrative tasks hinder efficiency and frustrate everyone involved, and most managers prefer to dedicate less time to administrative tasks like scheduling. If we can automate the process, managers will have up to 10 hours more per week for projects that enhance productivity, employee engagement, and customer satisfaction. Automating the process will reduce manager attrition, too.

With scheduling software, communication improves while saving time and reducing confusion. Schedules are automatically sent to employees’ computers and phones for immediate access. And good software allows employees to manage changes to their shifts. They can initiate swaps or make themselves available for extra hours. Using computers and smartphones improves real-time interaction within a simple structure that enhances the communication around work schedules.

Empower Employee Control

Retail locations need reliable workforces, but we can do more to empower our employees regarding scheduling. As employees return to work, there will be more demands for flexible hours, split shifts, and specific hours and days off. We need to listen attentively to those requests. We’ve seen how employee preferences change their willingness to work for us, and today, they have more weight than ever. If we can collaborate with our employees, turnover will be lower, and satisfaction will be higher.

The digital shift for small businesses was monumental as the pandemic forced restaurants to work online and clinics to treat patients remotely. The enhanced capabilities brought with improved technology can benefit scheduling managers and employees as well. Let’s get beyond internal manual administrative processes and provide automated scheduling solutions that improve manager efficiency while reducing employee attrition.

Author Profile Jon Forknell is the Vice President and General Manager of Atlas Business Solutions, Inc., a software marketing company specializing in employee scheduling software, including ScheduleBase employee scheduling software, and other business software solutions. In the past, Jon has been recognized by the U.S. Small Business Administration as a SBA Young Entrepreneur of the Year. For many years, Atlas Business Solutions has been named one of Software Magazine’s Top 500 Software Companies.

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