Why Do Employees Leave? Seeking Insights on Attrition Causes and Solutions

Understanding Employee Attrition

I am currently working to understand why employees leave an organization. Attrition is a significant concern for HR professionals, including myself. Management has asked me to identify the reasons for employee resignations and suggest remedies.

I reflected on why I might leave a job and identified the following reasons:

• **Competitive Pay:** Employees should be compensated according to their position and the market rate. It is crucial to assess what competitors are offering, as "Money Matters." If employees cannot meet their financial needs and see their peers earning more elsewhere, it may drive them to leave the company.

• **Positive Working Environment:** This includes work-life balance, a supportive work environment, a positive attitude, and a cohesive team. Employees spend more than a third of their day at work, making this a vital factor. Senior management is responsible for fostering this environment, and it should be promoted from the top down. I believe a poor work environment is a primary reason for employee attrition, as employees may compromise on salary to some extent but not on their work environment, especially young and dynamic employees.

• **Continuous Development:** Employees remain engaged with their jobs as long as they see opportunities for development and learning. An environment that encourages trying and implementing new things is essential. Without these opportunities, jobs become monotonous and boring. Employees with high ambitions will leave the company for development and promotion.

If I don't find these elements in a workplace, I would prefer to quit. I am preparing a brief report to submit to management before completing my assignment, possibly by the end of this week. I kindly request seniors and experts to provide their views, comments, suggestions, and guidance. My sole aim is to create a better workplace and happy employees.

Regards,
Human Resources Professional

Reasons for Employee Attrition

Some of the reasons I feel are:

• Work culture
• Pay
• Partiality at the workplace
• Career growth

Addressing Employee Attrition: A Structured Approach

Your problem needs to be addressed through diagnosis, prognosis, prescription, and intervention. It's an Organizational Development exercise and should be carried out in a structured manner, with data/input supported by empirical analysis.

1) Diagnosis: You can use inputs from "Exit Interviews." You may also collect informal feedback from peers and superiors about the exiting employees.

2) Intervention: Derive a plan to address the cause—perhaps you may need to modify HR processes, develop interlinks, implement engagement interventions, or it could be simpler, like addressing hygiene issues (Herzberg's theory of motivation and hygiene factors). It depends on organizational culture, business goals, etc.

3) Follow Up: Conduct "stay interviews," "engagement interviews," etc., to take preventive measures.

Regards,
Shailesh Parikh
Vadodara, Gujarat
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Frankly, I think you are going off on a tangent. Your management wanted you to "tell the reasons why employees are resigning and remedies" as related to your company. However, you just collated the generic reasons for attrition. How many of those reasons, which you or other members mentioned, actually apply to your company? I assume your bosses want to hear from you about the reasons that apply to your company. I hope you get the point. I suggest focusing on this angle and also providing more details about your company – such as the sector, size, location(s), present attrition rate in your company vs. the industry average in your sector, etc.

This will provide the right ingredients/inputs for the members to offer 'actionable' suggestions. The more inputs you provide, the better the suggestions. All the best.

Regards,
TS

I agree with your post, and the reasons I have mentioned earlier are applicable to me in this organization. I feel I would have quit the company for these reasons if I had been a permanent employee. I have interacted with employees who highlight issues such as being paid less than X & Y companies in the same locality and business. They mention staying late for no reason, lack of training, backbiting, and many more concerns. We are working on designing a competitive pay structure for the employees. Hope things will start changing.

Regards.

When preparing reports for management, it is crucial to be as specific as possible. Management looks for actionable inputs from you. For example, stating, "...we are paid less than X & Y company belonging to the same locality and same business," can be vague. It is important to provide specific figures and stick to the facts. Management is responsible for drawing conclusions and making decisions on whether salaries are low, high, or the same. Various factors and variables determine the salary structure within the same industry among different companies. Merely repeating what employees say, such as 'salary low' or 'no training,' may lead to you being perceived as partial towards the employees, even if that is not your intention.

Hope this clarifies the point. Based on your previous communication, it seems like this is a consulting assignment for you rather than being the HR person within the company. Please correct me if I am mistaken.

Best regards,
TS

Employee Engagement Activities

I suggest you work on the Employee Engagement Activities. Plan for a list of engagement activities that require maximum worker participation and are cost-effective. Basically, have the motto in mind that people should Say, Stay, and Strive for the organization. This means:

1. Say - Always say positive things about the company.
2. Stay - They should have a desire to be an active member of the organization.
3. Strive - Exert extra effort that contributes to business success.

Yours Sincerely,
Jitender Kumar Sehgal

Apart from the points mentioned by you and others, the immediate superior of the person has a very important part to play in the retention or separation of the employee. There are instances where people join companies to be associated with a boss from whom they can learn and be comfortable.

Regards,
Pralekh

Apart from the points mentioned by you and others, the immediate superior of the person has a very important part to play in the retention or separation of the employee. There are instances where people join companies to be associated with a boss from whom they can learn and be comfortable.

Regards,
Pralekh

Hi Abedeen, 3-4% of employees leaving and new people coming in is a normal fact of life. Apart from all the reasons discussed so far, I would like to add three questions:

Are You Recruiting from Too Far-Off Places?

If that's the case, unless you pay significantly, workers won't stay.

Does the Job Require Niche Skills?

In that case, competitors may be poaching your people.

Does the Work Involve Any Risks?

In this case, all good employees will leave no matter what you do. Lower the risk or keep hiring more people at a time. That's what Tajsateesh is suggesting when saying to analyze your company and not the world.

Conduct an employee satisfaction survey or have it done by a professional company.

Regards

Understanding Attrition in IT Companies

Yours is a small company, but the attrition rate in big companies like Infosys, TCS, Wipro, etc., is quite alarming. The environment at these big IT companies is quite comfortable, with plenty of facilities and a good salary structure. There seems to be a good scope for further improvements, but still, there is a problem of attrition of at least 5%, maybe 10%.

I have a small IT company, and I hire technocrats from big IT companies for my work. I find that they leave the company due to various reasons, including but not limited to the following:

1. They do not get exposure to multiple tasks in these companies. They end up doing the same thing all the time, perhaps with the promise of a higher salary in the future.

2. The boss or supervisor is not cooperative in their view, leading them to decide to leave the company.

3. They receive a significant salary increase and more respect in small companies, where they feel more valued.

4. They often leave the company based on referrals from their friends who work in small companies and recommend them.

5. Some leave due to domestic circumstances, proximity to their parental home, office timings, or personal reasons.

Regards,
Mahavir Mittal

It would have been nice if you could have provided more data, such as the sector you work in. Is it Manufacturing, PR/Media, IT, Hospitality, Medical, or Sales Marketing? There could be many assumptions. This forum can offer valuable input if the query is specific. You might be surprised that the highest turnover in many cities is especially in the F&B area. A good chef might be here today and somewhere else tomorrow. Another set of people in high demand are nurses in hospitals. Some companies that have outsourced their housekeeping and building maintenance services find it difficult to retain people such as electricians, plumbers, cleaners, etc., and face the challenge of attrition. You could be in IT or advertising too. Post the data, and reap the information that will flow through.

Regards

There can be many causes. I feel that the need to leave is due to the immediate boss with whom you cannot get along and the culture of the organization.

Regards

Factors Influencing Employee Attrition

At lower levels, salary is the most important criterion for quitting. Whereas, at higher levels, it is learning opportunities, leading a team, taking on responsibilities for important matters, and finally, recognition and appreciation for a job well done.

Please let me know if you need further assistance.

Regards

Our company is in the medical sector. Each employee has their own needs, so factors differ. I am trying to summarize the factors.

I agree with Mr. Ramana that due to competition in the medical sector and scarcity of resources, attrition is high compared to other sectors. Thanks to all for your views and suggestions.

Regards

I hope you are fine. I feel your post is relevant in this scenario. Over the past few days, I went on a hunt for information on the same matter and found a fair answer regarding attrition. Pay scale may not be too involved in the matter, but some other important aspects will be. I have finally developed a concept called Starfish Eye. Now, I am happy to say that after that, I can handle the attrition.

Regards

I saw your starfish concept with interest and have come to appreciate it, primarily because I personally feel that salary and the package are secondary aspects of the employee.

Discrimination and Personal Experience

The other aspects are discrimination - personal experience - dates back to the year 1990. The company I was with had a number of BITSians from different streams, from CSE to dual/sandwiched degrees, etc. The decision of the management for fixing compensation was to start CSE employees at 20% higher compared to other courses. I opposed this vehemently, and my battle for justice to bring them on par took 13 months. I managed to bring them on par with the others after all members of the management board except the Chief endorsed it. He too succumbed in the larger interest of the organization and the future. Everyone was brought to the same level, and sadly, after a month, all 35 of them left the company to join another. I was disappointed and felt let down, but during the exit interview, they all told me they were really grateful for my efforts but wanted to teach the management a lesson, hence the exit.

Reasons for Employee Attrition

People also leave when they feel they are discarded, disrespected, personally (emotionally) disturbed, or feel disengaged because they dislike what they are pursuing or the environment they are in. Such people disassociate themselves from the company and the rest, perhaps do a dissection and discover a new self.

That's it from me for a distribution of events that may trigger attrition.

Out of my experience, there are several reasons why employees leave a company.

Reasons for Employee Attrition

1. Competitive Salaries: Employees may leave if they find better-paying opportunities within the same industry.

2. Nature of Work and Environment: The work environment plays a crucial role. Some labor-intensive jobs may require more frequent breaks during the day to reduce employee turnover.

3. Long Working Hours: Some companies offer part-time work to address the issue of long working hours.

4. Age of Employees: Sometimes, the age of employees does not align with the nature of the work. For example, many millennial employees prefer to work in fields like electronics, such as mobiles, computers, and peripherals.

5. Marital Status: Married employees tend to stay longer in their jobs.

6. Cultural Expectations: In some societies, cultural norms require communication and visits between relatives and friends, which can be difficult for employees to balance with work, leading them to leave.

7. Lack of Orientation and Training: If employees do not receive proper orientation and training at the beginning, it may affect their performance and satisfaction later on.

Regards,
A'Hakeem

Understanding Employee Attrition: A Balancing Act

Hope all my dears are fine. It was a hot topic to discuss in this scenario, but some do not bother about the situation. I am an HR person leading the Engagement and Attrition Department. We go through a ton of analysis and research, and finally, we concluded it's a balancing process in the organization. No one can stop the attrition, but one can, and that is the employee. I would like to share some criteria we analyzed a few months back:

1. Salary: If a person receives a salary higher than expected, it may help them stay in the company for a longer time.

2. Competitive Salary: Folks, do you want to share how much the competitive salary was? Suppose one jumps from one company to another; how do you find out what the competitive salary is?

Finally, we conclude that our intervention is salary. It is not a parameter to attrition. Instead, HR should focus on retaining employees.

I am sharing this based on a live experience. I recruited five BTech students and we paid them the minimum wage. Now, all of them have been with the company for over four years. How did this happen? You should find the answer from both success and failure to get a suitable answer.

Warm Regards,

SANDEEP K K

HR Generalist

Retention Challenges in a Manufacturing Unit

I am working with a manufacturing unit consisting of approximately 850 employees. I am facing a problem where recently joined workers leave very frequently, although the older ones do not leave as often. I conducted a survey last year and found that older workers prefer to work with us because our salary distribution date is fixed, and we never exceed beyond the 7th of each month.

My issue lies with the new workers who leave the job within one month of joining, and there is also a high rate of absenteeism among all the workers. We are paying minimum wages as per the law to all our workers.

I recently conducted a study on the workers who left since January 2014, and it revealed that out of 257 who left: 60 left within the first fifteen days of joining, 50 were terminated due to absenteeism, 5 were terminated due to misconduct, 27 left due to personal reasons, 6 started their own businesses, 5 joined somewhere else, and 75 left without information, with the rest leaving due to miscellaneous reasons.

Please guide me on how I can address and promote retention among my workforce. This is highly urgent for me.

Regards,

@Moderators - I think this situation deserves to be opened up as a NEW thread, right now clubbed with a year-old thread.

Hello Vinexjobs, I appreciate the exercise you did and the findings. However, the solution to any problem rests with the WHY (meaning the reason(s)) of the situation.

Except for the "27 left due to personal reasons, 6 started their own business, 5 joined somewhere else," the tentative, if not exact, reason(s) aren’t known. If you have checked with the others too, please mention - since any suggestions by the members will depend on such details.

However, going by what you mentioned, there SURELY seems to be more problems in your company than what you seem to have noticed or mentioned. The older employees seem to be pretty happy NOT JUST due to the reason you mentioned ["because our salary distribution date is fixed and we never exceed beyond the 7th of each month"], but COULD also be a case of an 'inverse case of resistance to change.' At their age, obviously, they would have more family responsibilities to handle and changing jobs would be in EITHER very desperate situations OR when they get very high hikes.

There's another aspect that your thread isn’t clear about: are the reason(s) that you mentioned for the employees leaving collected by you/HR department OR collated and compiled by other employees across the spectrum? Quite often, what an exiting employee tells HR isn’t the complete truth.

Regards, TS

Understanding Employee Attrition in Manufacturing

TajSateesh has shared some excellent insights. I would like to submit this as I am not risking any suggestion without enough data.

Clarifying Your Industry

First, you should clarify: do you work for a manufacturing unit? What does your company manufacture?

My Assumptions on Attrition Causes

You may face attrition if you are making "commercial explosives" or "hazardous chemicals" as there may be many safety measures that need to be observed. People might leave out of fear of serious or crippling injuries or loss of life, as accidents are common occurrences.

You mentioned conducting a study recently on the workers who left since January 2014. It showed that out of the 257 who left:

- 60 left within the first fifteen days of joining. If your company is involved in manufacturing "commercial explosives" or "hazardous chemicals," fear of serious or crippling injuries or loss of life could be the reason.
- 50 were terminated due to absenteeism, which may indicate fear.
- 5 were terminated due to misconduct, possibly due to resistance to working in unsafe conditions.
- 27 left due to personal reasons, which could be individuals not wanting to jeopardize their future or career.
- 6 started their own businesses, showing personal ambition. The question is, did they learn something from being here that led them to compete with your organization?
- 5 joined somewhere else, perhaps indicating different career aspirations that made them choose your company temporarily.
- 75 left without providing information, and the rest left due to miscellaneous reasons. This suggests that there could be something radically wrong with the company. These individuals might challenge the management if threatened with action. I wonder how long these people stayed with the company.

Regards,

Thanks, Mr. TajSateesh and Mr. Raman, for your valuable views. I agree with you that the workers might not have shared the complete truth with me. We are not manufacturing any hazardous products; we are into 100% export business along with manufacturing. One more reason I guess can be our disciplinary part. In our unit, PPE usage and wearing shoes are compulsory. Chewing tobacco in any form, cigarette smoking, and bringing a mobile phone on factory premises are not allowed, as per the requirement of our international clients. Social compliance is followed as we are SA 8000 certified. The reason for the longer stability of older workers can be that they do not prefer to take risks at this stage of life. We are hiring all employees on a permanent role from the very first day. Workers are allowed to take leaves but with prior information, except in case of an emergency. We pay an attendance bonus per month for 100% attendance with no late coming.

Solution to Attrition

Now, for the solution, I have selected one department as a model. The problem of attrition in this department was mainly due to work considered hard by the helpers and them being reluctant to work in shifts. I have prepared a questionnaire to be filled out by us at the time of entrance of the worker just to check whether he suits our present scenario or not. We will implement this questionnaire in this department and observe the results. This may help us recruit the right candidate for the type of job he is supposed to do. Also, I feel some training is required to be given to their supervisors for sustaining the manpower.

I started a new thread on this topic yesterday, but there is no response there. You may continue your suggestions on the same in the future.

Thanks and Regards,
Vinex