It takes more than a wage increase to improve staff retention

What will the impact be of raising the minimum wage in Alberta? Several possible outcomes have been advanced, as proponents and opponents have jointed the debate sparked by the election promise of the newly-elected NDP government to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2018.

Both sides have put forward valid points to support their positions. Those opposed argue that the increase will narrow already slim profit margins, lead to job losses and result in higher costs for consumers.

Proponents believe that it is morally wrong that business should depend on low wages to be profitable, and predict that the change will lift many families out of poverty.

The debate has also yielded some assertions from both sides that border on the ludicrous. A writer of a letter to the editor of the Edmonton Journal claimed that this policy initiative will “hurt the people [it] was designed to help.” He predicts that prices will rise and that many customers “will react by either reducing the number of times they eat at a restaurant or reducing the amount they tip . . . I will likely stop tipping. Is that what restaurant workers really want?”

In another edition of the same newspaper, an advocate for the increase suggested that it will be good for business. “Higher wages can actually help control business costs by reducing employee turnover which, in turn, increases productivity.”

While it would certainly benefit businesses if this were to be an outcome, an increase to the minimum wage is unlikely to make much difference to the ability of employers to retain employees who will still be at the bottom of the wage scale.

A job that pays $15 an hour may appear attractive today, when the minimum is $10.20 (and $11.20 after October 1), but it won’t be as attractive when everyone is earning at least $15 an hour. Three years from now, minimum-wage earners will be just as attracted to a job that pay more as they are now.

What’s true now will be just as true then. Wages alone, no matter how high, are not the secret to retaining staff. It isn’t just about the money. Never has been. The promise of higher pay may be effective as a means of getting people in the door, but not as way of keeping them there.

Employers with low turnover are those organizations that offer employees more than a paycheque. Staff are trusted and treated with respect. Managers and supervisors let them know what’s happening and acknowledge them for what they do. Leaders spend time with staff, encourage their input and listen to their feedback.

Staff remains with organizations where they feel valued as individuals and appreciated for how they contribute and what they achieve.

Staff recognition is a key element of any staff-retention strategy. Based on research conducted in different workplaces in different countries, Globoforce concluded that the No. 1 reason that employees leave companies is because they feel unappreciated.

What this research doesn’t say, but others would suggest, is that what’s missing in organizations with high turnover rates is expressions of appreciation in the form of recognition from staff members’ immediate supervisors.

The importance of the relationship between staff and supervisors is reflected in the oft-repeated observation that “people join companies, but employees quit bosses.”

Supervisors can maintain and strengthen this relationship by offering meaningful recognition, which they are well-positioned to provide. They interact with staff regularly. They know what staff does and when they do it well.

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Are managers and supervisors within your organization fulfilling their critical staff-recognition role as well as they could? Why not invite me to customize one of my programs to provide them with simple, inexpensive tips, tools and techniques to recognize their staff? Call (780-433-1443) or email nmscott@telus.net to discuss how your frontline leaders could use high-value, low-cost staff recognition to improve staff retention, while also boosting morale and increasing employee engagement.

What is the most ridiculous interview question ever asked?

When I hear about some questions that interviewers ask, I scratch my head. What are they thinking? What can they possibility learn and how do they use what they heard when making their hiring decisions?

I’m not thinking about poorly worded questions that require the candidates to supply information already available on their resumes, or inquiries that violate human rights laws. No, what I am referring to are those ridiculous questions that some managers ask:

“If you were a tree, what type of tree would you be?” (Feel free to substitute animal, flower or superhero for tree.)

“Suppose you were stranded on a desert island, with whom would you want to share your island?”

“Here’s a paper clip. In two minutes, how many different uses can you come up with to use this paper clip? I’ll time you.”

How do they interpret the responses? Have these interviewers been issued secret decoder rings? Where do I get one?

Now it’s your turn. I would like to hear about your experience. What was the most ridiculous question that you or someone you know was asked during an interview? Or it could be a question that you have read about having been asked.

Email your ridiculous questions to nmscott@telus.net and you could win a $10 Tim Hortons gift card. I will publish all the questions submitted by Monday, August 24 and ask Briefly Noted readers to pick the winner—the most ridiculous question ever asked.

Click here to subscribe to Briefly Noted and to receive, every two weeks, a question to help you identify potential top performers, along with other tips, tools and techniques to interview more effectively and recognize and retain staff.