How employers benefit from engaging employees more effectively

Though the pandemic may have led millions of people who were previously dissatisfied with their careers to make positive changes, employers forced to confront staff shortages may be wondering what they can do to attract qualified and talented candidates. Finding ways to engage workers more completely could benefit companies in various ways. A recent poll from Gallup found that companies suffer some pretty significant consequences when their employees are disengaged. Gallup reports that such companies suffer from 16 percent lower profitability, 18 percent lower productivity and 37 percent lower job growth.

Recognition of what employees value most could help businesses retain workers longer and keep those workers engaged. A recent survey of 540 full-time employees from the market insight firm Clutch found that the most important workplace values for full-time employees are fair pay and fair treatment. It’s no surprise that compensation bears such significance, as pandemic-related inflation and global conflicts have led to rising costs on everything from food to fuel. However, a survey from the risk management experts at Willis Towers Watson found that there’s a disconnect between employees and employers in regard to the importance of fair pay and its relation to workplace stress.

Employees consider low pay to be the second greatest source of workplace stress, while employers indicated that eight other factors are greater sources of such stress for their employees. Employers concerned about staff dissatisfaction, and the effects that disengaged employees can have on their bottom lines, can make a concerted effort to revisit their compensation policies. An overhaul of such policies could be just what companies need to reengage employees and improve employee retention, giving businesses a significant advantage in an era marked by significant turnover in the labor force.