At your service: Employee retention

I was speaking to a friend the other day who worked at Costco for 23 years. 

He worked his way up and has been a manager in one location for quite some time. 

I commented that almost everyone I speak to who works at Costco says they love working there. Even when I shop in different Costco stores, if I need help finding anything, almost everyone is warm, friendly and helpful. I asked him about staff turnover. He said it is consistently around eight per cent each year. When you factor in how many people are employed in a location, I thought that was quite good, especially considering the latest reports on company turnover stats. In a 2024 report by Merce,r the average of retail and wholesale turnover was sitting at 25.9 per cent. 

When I asked what Costco was doing right to keep their employees happy, he stated that they pay their employees fairly, have a decent compensation package which includes a comprehensive savings package, and, for the most part, it is a fun place to work. 

So why do people leave their jobs? In a world where we expect more from employees, burnout is happening at higher levels than ever before. People are getting fed up with being overworked. They are feeling the pressure to continuously do more, and they are spending less time with families and friends. 

Another reason is pay. The average person will “jump ship” at least seven times during their working career. While Baby Boomers averaged staying 12 years at a job, Gen X tend to stay 3.4 years, and Gen Y tend to change jobs every 2.7 years. That is scary. Now sometimes it is because someone wants to go back to school or switch industries altogether. But if another company is offering more for a similar role, people will most likely leave for that opportunity. 

Another factor is workplace culture, and in my opinion, this is a huge one. You can sometimes get away with paying a little bit less than your competitors if the culture is great. If people enjoy going to work every day, instead of saying “It’s a job,” then you can see you have a problem. 

I’m a firm believer in paying people fairly. Not just a living wage while the companies’ pockets are being lined deeply but a complete compensation package that keeps your employees happy and working for you. 

So here are a few ideas that go above and beyond a decent-paying job to help you keep your employees smiling and with you for a long time.

Give them an annual review. This sounds like a no-brainer, but it’s amazing how many people I have spoken to who have never had a review before. How do they know what they are doing well and what needs to be improved?

Give them more responsibility. Lots of people get stale in their jobs. They go through the motions but really aren’t engaged. Challenge them with new initiatives and see how they thrive.

Reward for greatness. I say greatness because you shouldn’t reward people for showing up to work on time. When people do the little extras to make customers smile, make co-workers’ jobs easier and great ideas that help your company, reward them! 

Have regular company functions. It can be simple things like donuts or a monthly BBQ. It could be half days off on Fridays during the summer. It could be a gift card to every employee when you have a solid month. 

If you treat employees well and pay them better than your competitors, your company will have a better chance of thriving and less employee turnover!

Take care of yourselves…and your teams! 

Portrait of Russ Dantu.

Russ Dantu is a 30-year veteran of the rental industry and has been delivering workshops, keynotes and seminars on customer service for 25 years. Visit russdantu.com.