EMPLOYERS nowadays should muster a huge degree of flexibility to arrest attrition and ensure employees will stay with them.
“To minimize attrition risk and retain talent, flexibility is key,” said Mitzi Blancaflor who is the associate director of Office Services-Tenant Representation at property-management consultant Colliers Phils.
According to Mercer’s 2022-2023 Global Talent Trends, seven out of 10 employees in the Philippines said that not being able to work remotely or hybrid permanently is a “deal-breaker” when considering whether to join or stay with an organization.
“In the same study, 74 percent of companies surveyed are providing flexible working options; this is significantly higher than the Asian [50 percent] and global [56 percent] averages,” Mercer mentioned.
On top of the flexible work setup, Blancaflor stressed that companies should also implement compensation adjustments, mental-health initiatives, as well as learning and development programs to improve their employees’ overall well-being.
Moreover, Colliers Phils. cited various companies that have taken creative steps to address the roadblocks to their return-to-office (RTO) initiatives. For instance, a financial-data and analytics firm in Taguig initiated a shuttle service for their workers to help them save on commuting time and cost.
An information-technology and consulting firm, on the other hand, has placed their workers on odd time shifts that are meant to not only sync their work hours with that of their clients. It also ensures that their workers avoid the morning and evening rush hours.
Other alternatives could likewise be learned from the fast-food industry, where workers are given either free meals or discounts. Furthermore, providing space in the office elements that workers seek outside of their work hours, such as gyms or leisure rooms, may further incentivize an RTO setup.
“Aside from transportation measures, many companies have accepted that the workplace needs to address employee needs more than ever,” said Blancaflor. “They have invested in newer, refreshed [spaces] that are not only aesthetic and appealing, but also more conducive to more collaboration and productivity.”
She said workers have started to prefer a work-from-home setup (WFH). It not only provides more personal time and financial savings, but also allows them the freedom and independence to manage their workday schedules.
“It is easy to see why there is an intense pushback from workers against RTO initiatives,” Blancaflor explained. “There are plenty of benefits provided by the WFH or work-from-anywhere [or WFA] setup—one of which is that workers do not have to worry about the hassle of commuting.”
According to Cisco’s 2022 Global Hybrid Work Study, 66 percent of Filipino survey-respondents said overall well-being improved because they spent less time commuting.
“In addition, 74 percent of [them said they have saved more than] 4 hours per week from what would have been spent sitting in traffic, while 37 percent saved over 8 hours per week,” said Blancaflor.
