Employers – Stop the Hemorrhaging of Talent
Things are tough right now. Coronavirus infection rates are spiking again, and it seems that we will be dealing with this pandemic for longer than expected. It looks like many kids will be learning remotely for some time.
This pandemic has impacted parents and guardians of school-age children as many are struggling to manage work and online school. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 865,000 women left the labor force (four times the number of men) when the 2020 school year started. According to a FlexJobs survey, 40% of working parents with kids under 18 have reduced their work hours or had to quit since the beginning of the pandemic. The impact is significant, given that there are 30.5 million working families just in the U.S.
This job loss is not only hard on employees who may have lost their jobs or seen their pay decrease, but it’s also hard on employers who are experiencing higher turnover and loss of talent. I’ve been following this issue for several months now and have compiled a recap of ideas for how employers can address these challenges and stop the hemorrhaging of talent from the workplace. Here are some strategies for hiring future employees and retaining current ones that have children doing virtual learning.
Strategies for Hiring Employees
Advertise flexible work options in job postings. Right now, some applicants aren’t even considering jobs that don’t have flexible working arrangements. Even if the applicant is qualified, they may not apply if a job is listed as full-time. So promote any flexibilities you offer in the job posting. You could add one sentence to each job posting, like: “We offer flexible working arrangements (reduced / alternate hours and location) for all applicants.”
Actively promote part-time work schedules. Discuss with each hiring manager if a new job posting can be structured as several part-time jobs. If so, advertise that in the job posting. Also let current employees know that they can discuss part-time options with their supervisor. To be consistent across the organization, put parameters in place for making those schedule changes.
Photo by Sandy Millar, sourced from Unsplash
Strategies for Retaining Employees
Don’t fire people for their kids appearing on zoom or making noise. This seems straightforward, right? But there have been reports of people being fired for kids appearing on zoom or making too much noise in the background. For those without kids, this may seem like an affront. But people with children – including your customers – understand that they can’t be contained. Kids are kids. Plus, they may even provide a nice entertainment break from endless zoom calls.
Set the tone from the top. Leaders should set examples for the entire company. Verbalize the current challenges and tell employees what the company is doing to support them. Model healthy work-life boundaries and show your kids or messy house on zoom. Be human.
Get employees’ input. Ask employees what they need right now. Find out how the pandemic is impacting peoples’ lives with child-rearing, caregiving, or concerns about health and safety. Try surveying employees about their needs and use employee resource groups for feedback.
Provide resources for managers. These times have created a whole new environment for managers to navigate, and they need resources and training to do it well. Provide templates on how to talk to employees about their needs. Train managers on how to support their direct reports. For example, to focus on productivity rather than availability, prioritize the most important work, and to allow employees flexibility in their work schedules. Update all managers on workplace changes to communicate to employees.
Implement meeting best practices. Required zoom meetings have become a sore spot during the pandemic. Here are best practices to make them more palatable:
Schedule all meetings one week in advance. This allows workers to coordinate childcare or arrange with their partner who watches the kids during which part of the day.
Be clear on attendance. Set up parameters regarding who is invited to what meetings to reduce unnecessary participation. In every meeting invite, list required and non-required attendees.
Don’t hold meetings unless absolutely necessary. Send recorded updates or memos instead.
Provide flexible paid time-off (PTO) options. Employees may need to take time off for any number of reasons, so provide options for them to use PTO. For example, provide supplemental PTO to use at their discretion, such as on days when schools are closed and childcare isn’t available, or for caring for a sick friend or relative. Another option is to allow employees to take PTO for part of the day, such as by working a 30-hour work week and filling in the additional 10 hours per week with PTO.
Provide relevant benefits. Show employees that you’re listening and supporting them during this time. Additional benefits are needed for childcare, virtual learning, and mental and physical health.
Child-care resources. Provide information to find daycare and contract with child-care agencies on discounts for employees.
Online tutoring. Add a new benefit for online tutoring of school-age children. Contract with a company to provide this support to working parents and guardians.
Mental health resources. Offer mental health resources like online therapy and free subscriptions to meditation apps.
Physical health resources. Offer physical health resources like free or discounted subscriptions to online fitness classes. Provide office equipment for them to use at home, like standing desks and external monitors to optimize workplace ergonomics and prevent injury.
Finally, let’s all be understanding and patient. Everyone is going through a tough time right now, so let’s give each other some extra grace and understanding. When this is all over, remember that you will need your employees and will want your employer brand reputation to be intact.
Let’s hope this pandemic ends soon, but in the meantime let’s work together to get through it. Any other ideas? Please list them in the comments below.
Hilary Kinney is the author of Project Management for Parents, a timeless book that provides resources for busy parents to streamline life at home. She is a certified Professional Project Manager with 17 years of experience at a Fortune 500 company.