Do you need to pay your staff more money, or do you need to pay them more attention?

Pay rises are great and they’re important – especially as we find ourselves navigating a cost of living crisis – but if you’re struggling to retain your employees, money can be a band-aid solution to a deeper problem that’s ingrained in your culture.

So if money isn’t the solution, what really makes employees stay? Well, it’s all about appreciation and recognition.

Why appreciation matters

In a survey, 66% of employees said they would quit their job if they felt unappreciated. And according to one Gallup poll, 65% of people feel unappreciated at work. 

What’s more, another study revealed that the office comes last in the list of places where people express gratitude. When you see these statistics together, it’s clear businesses have a lot of work to do. 

If managers and the senior leadership team at businesses don’t show gratitude, employees feel underappreciated. Throw in overworked employees under a lot of pressure, and you’ve got a recipe for high turnover.

What are the signs your employees feel undervalued?

• They’re suddenly withdrawn
• They’re no longer enthusiastic about new projects or company initiatives
• They come to work “checked out” – also known as ‘quiet quitting’ where employees don’t quit, but do the bare minimum

How can you improve employee recognition?

You need to find ways that your business can show appreciation consistently, sincerely and naturally. It’s about building a culture of recognition, rather than one-off thank yous. Here are a few ideas:

Find fun ways to give praise

Invite managers and employees to write personal notes to their colleagues recognising what they did well and explaining why it was important – these could be presented publicly in team or company meetings. You could also host annual awards where recognised employees are honoured in front of their peers and senior management.

Actively listen to your employees

It’s not enough to send employees annual surveys asking for feedback. You need to consistently create open spaces for them to share their thoughts and concerns – and take action if negative feedback is given. This reassures your team that their voices matter and drives loyalty.

Ensure your employees don’t feel overworked and overwhelmed

With such a high demand for talented workers and a focus across businesses on workplace health and wellness, overworking employees is a short-term strategy that isn’t worth the long-term pain. It also isn’t a smart management strategy.

Research shows that after a certain point, productivity declines for every additional hour. Plus, employees who are stressed and overworked fall ill more frequently and make expensive mistakes. It’s simply not sustainable.

Over time, what you see is a decline in employee satisfaction, which eats into your company’s recruitment and retention costs as burnt-out employees leave and share their experience with other candidates.

Support your employees with their mental health 

A survey shows that 81% of workers say they will be looking for workplaces that support their mental health in the future. 

The WHO estimates that Covid-19 triggered a 25% increase in general anxiety and depression worldwide. This is driving thousands out of the workforce with more sick days attributed to mental health conditions. 

Embedding wellbeing into your culture and finding ways to support your employees with their mental health is key to allowing your employees – and your business – to flourish. 

There are two key ways you can do this:

• Encourage employees to speak openly about their mental health and provide a safe and supportive environment where they can do so. This can include regular check-ins, employee assistance programmes and mental health days.

• Provide access to mental health resources, such as counselling services, support groups and online resources. Offering a package of employee benefits that focus on health and wellbeing can be an effective way to make sure they have access to the support they need, when they need it.

Find ways to improve your employees’ overall wellbeing

Nurturing health and wellbeing in the workplace isn’t just a good thing to do: it makes good business sense. From attracting and retaining the top talent to reducing sick days and increasing overall employee engagement and productivity, investing in a healthy, happy workforce has a direct impact on your bottom line.

More importantly, though, it shows your employees that you genuinely care. This can involve organising group fitness or meditation classes, providing healthy snacks in the office or offering benefits that give them access to speedy GP appointments.

Demonstrate that you care about their career

A huge 94% of employees in a LinkedIn survey said they would stay at a company longer if it invested in their professional development. 

If your employees are keen to learn, that means they are curious, engaged and sharp. It means they’re most likely to dive into a challenge and think of creative solutions. 

You need a learning and development programme that feeds that curiosity to stop them seeking it elsewhere. Employees also need career advancement pathways with a 

clear view on how they can progress within the company.

How we can help

At AQORD Wellness, we’re on a mission to make sure that all employers, whatever their company size, can provide their employees with corporate-level health and wellbeing benefits at a cost that’s in line with their budget.

For the price of buying each employee lunch once a month, employers who offer our benefits see:

• Fewer sick days
• Increased productivity
• Higher employee retention rates
• An increase in overall workplace wellbeing

Meanwhile, employees – and everyone in their household – benefit from:

• Quick and easy access to GP services
• Mental health counselling 
• Hundreds of discounts across their favourite brands

Want to find out more? Check out our Premium plan for a full list of benefits