4 Ways to Boost Employee Relations

How you treat your employees says a lot about you as a business owner. A happy workforce shows through in what you are able to do and can be a massive boost to your reputation and sales. After all, bad news travels fast, and if you aren’t treating your employees well, this news will spread like wildfire, making it harder for you to attract the correct type of talent to your company.

Being able to stand out as an employer people want to work for and not have them working for you to pay the bills can increase job satisfaction, customer service, and morale within the company. If an employee is happy in their job, this shows through in their interactions with others, both colleagues and customers, as well as the job they perform. Happy employees are more likely to go above and beyond without being asked to as a way to reciprocate the treatment they get from their employers (this can also work the other way around, too).

If you want to improve employer-employee relations and become talked about for all of the right reasons, here are some things you need to be doing to help improve company morale.

Offer flexible or remote working.

The COVID pandemic proved that people can work just as well from home as in the office, and incorporating this into your working model permanently can be massively beneficial. 

Instead of having a blanket rule across the board, talk to different staff members and find out how they would like to work. If you have some of your team in the office or working from home where they feel more comfortable, this can benefit you massively. Not everyone can work the same way, and some people prefer the hustle and bustle of a busy working environment, while others prefer to work from home in a more secluded way. If they can perform their job roles without dropping the ball, then remote working can be right for you.

Flexible working means giving accommodations to your employees regarding their schedules. It could be that some part of the week is done from home while the rest is in the office. It could be meeting set operational hours and then allowing employees to fill their timesheets around this; for example, if you need everyone working between 10 and 2 p.m. Monday to Friday but they’re on 40 hours contracts, this is 20 hours a week, they need to be present at this time, they can then decide when they work the additional 20 as long as the job gets done. Or it can be moving to a 4-10 work schedule where employees work for 10 hours 4 days a week and have 3 days off as opposed to 5 eight-hour shifts Monday to Friday.

Perks and benefits

The more benefits you can offer employees, the happier they will be. Plus, it can also be an added incentive when bringing new hires on board. There are three main types of benefits you need to look at: benefits required by law, industry-standard benefits, and fringe offerings. What this means is that your packages need to include those benefits that the law stipulates you offer, include additional benefits that are provided as standard within your industry, and then bring in perks that are there to entice employees in and give you an edge for improved employee satisfaction.

Benefits required by law include;

• Workers Compensation
• Minimum wage and overtime compensation
• Unemployment compensation contributions
• Social Security and Medicare contributions

Industry-standard benefits are the following;

• Health insurance
• Family and medical leave
• Life insurance
• Disability insurance
• Retirement and savings plans
• Stock options
• PTO

Lastly, the fringe benefits are perks including;

• Mental health coverage or resources
• Wellness packages
• Free meals
• Skills and development training
• Paid further education
• Company equipment

Improved employee culture

An improved employee culture is geared toward positive collaboration, communication, and support. You want to ensure that people feel supported when coming into work and aren’t dreading a day in the office. If there is a toxic work culture, then you are likely going to be experiencing a high turnover rate and poor morale.

New hires especially will want to know what the culture is like. Even one bad review on Glassdoor can run them off and have them heading out the door before they even sit at their desk.

Identify issues within your company that can affect the culture. While each business will have a different type of culture depending on the work they do, it could still be a safe, respectful place for those working there. Allow employees to voice concerns and submit feedback, give and take constructive feedback and standards, and always be looking for you to improve what you do and how you do it. Showing employees respect can go a long way to support your company and help you to get the best from everyone who works there. Remember, once you have identified issues, you must rectify them immediately to avoid further damage.

Be transparent

There is something about shrouding company decisions and behaviors in secrecy that fosters an atmosphere of distrust and can damage the company, making employees feel they aren’t respected or valued. At the same time, they don’t need to know every decision you make; any that involve them directly or the job they do should be openly communicated with them. 

Transparency within your company means everyone is informed of what’s happening and updated with anything concerning them. This takes away any mystery and allows everyone to remain on the same page so you can improve the working relationship and communications within teams.

Creating a positive, supportive workplace that boasts excellent communication skills and employer-employee relations takes time and effort to help you make the right choices for everyone involved. You need to be aware of not only the impacts you have on your staff but also the impact they have on others during the working day. A healthier workplace environment means you can do more, achieve more, and excel at what you do with employees who go above and beyond.