In its latest biannual survey, released in October 2009, temp firm Spherion Staffing Solutions asked about 300 employers and about 2,500 workers to name the top "drivers of retention." As they did in 2007 and 2005, the bosses listed soft stuff: "management climate" and "supervisor relationship," for instance.
Employees' top two in all three surveys? Benefits and compensation. And this year, only 27% are "very satisfied" with their pay. Just 37% are equally happy with their benefits.
Of course, the high unemployment rate has scared working Americans into hanging on to their jobs at all costs. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) says the "quit rate" --the portion of U.S. employees who voluntarily leave their jobs--was just 1.3% in August 2009, about half the rate that prevailed when the BLS began collecting such figures at the end of 2000.
A survey by benefits consultant Watson Wyatt found that the "engagement," or loyalty, of top-performing employees has dropped by 25% over the past year, largely because people who kept their jobs have been soured by layoffs, bonus and benefit cuts and a halt in promotions.
Why do new survey findings reveal that nearly half of U.S. companies' high performers are actively looking for other jobs?
The simple answer is that most employers are not spending enough time and money to retain their management talent.
Source: BUSINESSWEEK, November 16, 2009
