In today’s world, a whopping 90% of people claim they are unhappy at work.
Unhappiness at work is not just a personal issue – it comes at a cost for employers, having a knock-on impact on the productivity and profitability of their business.
Since happy staff are more likely to stay with their employers 7 times longer than unhappy employees, the real impact on a business becomes clear. If job satisfaction is low, it is bound to create long-term challenges.
In this article, I aim to understand how much impact an unhappy workforce can have on your business. We’ll then discuss the difference having a good HR system in place can make and how it can turn your business around.
The Business Impact of an Unhappy Workforce
The infographic below breaks down the main reasons for employees being unhappy with their jobs, with workload and a lack of control coming out on top.
Your business needs to become more in tune with the reasons employees are not enjoying their roles, allowing you to know where change is needed and introduce improved processes.
If your employees are not satisfied with their jobs, this can have a knock-on effect on the wider team. Being surrounded by colleagues who are not happy at work will result in an unproductive environment that lacks motivation to deliver.
Let’s discuss a handful of the impacts that can result in lost money for your business.
Absenteeism
Happy employees are proven to take 10 times less sick leave than unhappy employees. This isn’t because happy employees are more likely to push through their sickness, but because unhappy employees are shown to be more inclined to need sick days when they are not physically sick. Being unhappy at work can have an impact on the mental wellbeing of your employees, resulting in high stress levels and a feeling of being burnt out.
If work-related mental health issues cause employees to call in sick or potentially even get signed off by a medical professional, this is an added cost to your business that could have been avoided.
Less productivity
Employee happiness and productivity come hand in hand, with engaged workers showing up to an 18% rise in output. This can be put down to their passion to get stuck in and do a good job motivating them to work harder.
On the other hand, employees who are not happy at work are more likely to make mistakes and do the bare minimum. Without the natural desire to be productive at work, your business can suffer a loss of earnings as a result.
Higher recruitment costs
If your workforce is unhappy, your employee turnover is inevitably going to be higher. Having employees leave can cause a lot of disruption to the everyday running of your business, causing you to lose out on valuable talent and leaving the rest of the team with a higher workload.
As well as impacting productivity, having to hire new employees can be costly. The costs of recruitment agency fees, time spent interviewing candidates, onboarding processes, and training new employees all add up.
Replacing lost employees on a regular basis turns out to be significantly more expensive than investing in the happiness of employees in the first place. Not only does this cut down on recruitment costs, but it also helps you maintain a more consistent team.
How HR Software Can Help Improve Employee Satisfaction
To overcome the issues you may be facing with employee retention, using a modern HR platform can improve everyday operations and create a better working environment for your team.
Nowadays, the HR systems available offer various features designed to improve efficiency. By automating mundane tasks that currently take up hours of time every day, the HR department can focus on what really matters – your employees.
Here are a handful of the ways that HR software can help improve the happiness of your employees:
- Employee portals: Most modern HR systems provide each employee with access to a personal portal that centrally manages all of their information. Containing everything from their job contract and payslips to holiday request forms and training documents helps organise their documents to improve efficiency. By tidying up official documents and giving employees more control, frustrations are reduced as they do not need to be as reliant on asking HR staff.
- Appraisal management: You should ensure that all employees are having regular appraisal meetings with their managers. Having the opportunity to sit down one-on-one and discuss their progress, any challenges, and career goals will mean they can get the support they need. HR software is able to record the date, notes, and required actions from the meeting to ensure all relevant parties have access.
- Communication platform: Collaboration is key within a business, so ensuring your employees use an effective communication platform will make their job easier. The option to be able to talk with colleagues across the business, create group chats, and have a company-wide platform to publish any business updates will help improve communication throughout your team.
- Wellbeing support: One of the key focuses of your HR department should be employee wellbeing. Since having a happy workforce is proven to provide better business results, this is not an area worth lacking in. Your HR software can be used to offer wellbeing resources to employees, whether this be access to private counselling, mental health resources, or confidential support, helping employees feel heard and cared for at work.Reward incentives: Being recognised for good work can go a long way, making employees feel a sense of pride over their achievements. HR software can be used to recognise and reward employees, whether it’s through simple acknowledgements of goals being met or through awarding monetary rewards to top performers.
Making a Positive Change to Your Business
The cost of unhappy employees is an expense that many business owners fail to realise, resulting in lost talent, a decrease in productivity, and ongoing recruitment costs.
Having a good HR system in place can make a huge difference in the way your employees are managed, offering a range of features to help improve the efficiency of your operations. By automating tasks that are currently consuming hours of manpower, your HR team can switch their attention to the happiness of their workforce.
By investing in HR software catered to the needs of your business, not only are you cutting down on the costs associated with unhappy employees, but you are also taking steps to improve the overall productivity and engagement of your team.
