The current economy and poor employer talent management practices will see an estimated 25 percent of employees leave their jobs this year. An estimated 42 million employees will leave their jobs in 2018, according to the findings of a national study conducted by Work Institute. Workplace turnover is increasing and the employee-driven marketplace may call for organizations to focus heavily on employee retention.
The report states that a successful economy and growing job marketplace allow a large percentage of employees to make career moves when current employers are not meeting their expectations and needs. Work Institute estimates one in four employees will leave their jobs in 2018, and that nearly 77 percent, or three-fourths, of that turnover could be prevented by employers.
“Employees have career options, and our study shows they are not hesitant to leave their current positions for jobs that better fit their preferences and expectations,” said Danny Nelms, president of Work Institute.
Employers will pay $600 billion in turnover costs in 2018 and can expect that number to increase to $680 billion by 2020.
“Employers must embrace the employee-in-control marketplace and understand conditions that must change in their workplace if they want to reduce costly turnover, keep workers and expand their businesses in a time of economic growth,” Nelms said. “Understanding the root causes of turnover is an important first step, and this report offers insights to help employers understand how to do that in their organizations.”
Reasons for employees changing jobs can range from bad managers to leaving for better-paying positions, but this report reinforces that career development opportunities, work-life balance and poor management are consistently a big reason why employees leave.
The 2018 Retention Report reveals the 50 most important reasons employees decided to leave their jobs and groups them into 10 categories, seven of which are considered more preventable by employers. The top five categories of reasons employees leave their jobs are:
- Career Development – No opportunity to grow in a preferred job and career. (21%)
- Work-Life Balance – Better work-life balance, which includes more favorable schedules, shorter commute times and scheduling flexibility. (13%)
- Manager Behavior – Unprofessional or unsupportive managers. (11%)
- Well-Being – Personal or family health issues. (9%)
- Compensation and Benefits – Pay was cited more often than benefits. (9%)
The report identifies other key takeaways, such as when employees are more likely to quit. Approximately 40 percent of employees left within 12 months of being hired, the highest first-year turnover rate in eight years. The percentage of employees who said they were aware of unethical, illegal or fraudulent behavior at their former place of employment rose to 6.1 percent last year, a 500 percent increase over 2010.
The full report can be found at www.workinstitute.com/retentionreport2018.
