How to Turn Bitter Employees into Happy Ones

The recession is behind us and the job market is on the mend, making it more important than ever for employers to hold on to their key employees. Doing more with less was the mantra during the protracted recession, leaving many employees overworked with little if any increases in their salary. Now those workers have other options, requiring managers to engage them or watch them walk out the door. “Organizations can settle into a pattern during a time of crisis that they fail to reevaluate as the business environment improves,” says Jessica Foster, partner and head of individual assessment and executive development at RHR International. “Operating with minimal resources, doing less than more, delaying backfilling open positions – these all lead to an intense pressure on the people who remain.” Throwing money at the problem of low morale isn’t going to fix everything. Yes there will be some employees who will remain loyal if they see an uptick in their compensation, but for the vast majority it’s going to have to be more than a pay raise to keep them there. Companies have to treat employees with respect and make sure they truly know they are valued by the organization, says Deb Keary, vp of human resources at the Society for Human Resource. “Valued means that their boss listens to what they say, and they feel like they make a difference to their company,” says Keary. “Bosses need to set aside the time to pay attention to their employees.” RELATED POST: 4 More Ways to Increase Employee Retention While the recession may have forced companies to cut back on perks in addition to salaries, if they can swing it now overworked professional will welcome opportunities for advancement whether it’s on the job training or paying for classes and/or certificates. If those things are still unaffordable even offering flex time or the chance to have off a couple of Fridays a month can go a long way in showing you care and will thus boost morale and loyalty. Not to mention respecting them enough to let them have a say in the current and future focus of the business. “If the workforce is truly all burned out and bitter, and the company does nothing, then morale will stay low and profits can be adversely affected,” says Keary. “If you can see that improvements need to be made, make them, for the good of the company and all of the employees who choose to stay and make it a better place to work.” It will undoubtedly cost company money if there is high turnover, but it may also cost them a lot to try to keep existing employees with the firm. Because of that Forster says companies shouldn’t embrace a keep them at all costs mentality but rather the effort to save an employee or employees should be in line with the value they bring to the business. “In rare cases extraordinary efforts to retain key individuals is worth the investment,” says Foster. “But unless you are a very small business with the luxury of addressing moral and retention on an individual basis, it is the system you have to fix, not the individual.” To repair it, Foster says to uncover the biggest pain points, put them in order of importance and then start solving them. For instance if the biggest gripe employees have is they have to do the work of three people it may be time to bring on someone to reduce their workload. If everyone is complaining that they have little opportunity to move up, then all it may take is creating a real advancement plan company wide. It’s also important to communicate to your employees what you are doing to improve their experience and prove your commitment to creating a better work environment by being consistent with your messaging, actions and investment, says Foster. The worst thing you can do for morale is not follow through with what you promised to do. Although turning around morale system wide will also cost a company money that will be money well spent because improving morale should result in better retention and engagement from your employees, says Foster.  “You are creating the ‘right’ environment for business success which should pay for itself at multiples of the cost,” she says. Boosting morale in an improving market should be a big focus for companies but if it’s only a handful of employees who are bitter or resentful then you may be better off letting them go. After all it only takes one toxic employee to infect the entire workforce. “It is not worth it to keep employees who are contributing nothing and making the workplace toxic,” says Keary. “Change and innovation are good.  New employees can bring new energy and enthusiasm to the company.”