Staff turnover (what it is and how to avoid it)

The term staff turnover is used to refer to the change of employees within a company. Staff constantly rotates the moment a worker leaves the organization, either due to dismissal or resigns and he must be replaced by another person to fill his positions and assume the functions of him and responsibilities.

In such a way that every time an employee leaves, the company's staff turnover increases.

In the administrative and business sphere it represents a very important concept, it deals with the passage of an employee through the institution, from the moment he arrives and after a certain time leaves. It is a measure of how long employees stay with the company and how often they need to be replaced.

Consequences of staff turnover

The general assessment of staff turnover is negative and varies according to different internal factors especially due to the ease or difficulty of filling the vacancy, training required by new employees and the costs of recruitment.

As indicated, the most common consequences can be:

• Externally, their performance is poorly perceived, both customers and suppliers may feel distrust and annoyance as it becomes difficult to establish a link with the company.
• Internally, the rotation and change of personnel requires the training and formation of new workers, which takes some time, The experience and development in the position is achieved as they develop their work, so productivity may decline.

Only in some contexts the staff turnover, can be positive, especially in those cases that are carried out to obtain more trained personnel. So the investment of time and money is justified by the results that will be achieved in a certain term.

The staff turnover rate

As mentioned above, when talking about staff turnover, reference is made to the number of workers, professional or not, who enter a company and then leave it for various reasons. Therefore, the staff turnover rate (IRP) It is understood and determined as the percentage relationship between income and retirements, in relation to the average number of workers in the company in a certain period of time.

Any company or institution is subject to variations in personnel, retirements, layoffs, deaths, voluntary dismissals, etc.

In this sense, the staff turnover rate is considered an indicator of human resources, which provides important information on the work satisfaction and the renewal of human capital.

How is the IRP calculated?

It is based on a percentage relationship between the incoming and outgoing volumes and the amount of human resources available during a certain period.

IRP = (A + D) / 2 x 100 / PE

A: Number of entries (people hired) in the period of time to be considered.

D: Number of departures (detached persons) in the same period.

PE: Effective Average. Which is obtained with the sum of the number of employees at the beginning and at the end of the period, then divided by 2.

If the staff turnover rate is very high, it is necessary for the company to evaluate the causes or effects of this, as it may be that there is dissatisfaction and job dissatisfaction among its workers. This type of result is linked to companies with a working environment unstable and negative, low productivity. Otherwise, if the turnover rate is very low, it can lead to stagnation and aging of the organization.

The optimal index is one that reflects a dynamic equilibrium, which through control and motivation mechanisms that allow the retention of workers who add value to the company, replacing those who harm the development of the herself.

Types of staff turnover

There are two types of staff turnover.

Voluntary rotation

It is one that occurs in the event that the worker resigns his position or position voluntarily.

Each case may be different, it circulates in a world of possibilities given by the reasons of each worker himself. For this reason, it is important to analyze the possible causes, in order to detect if something in the company is not working as it should.

Many times the causes of voluntary rotation they are related to the image that the company gives to its employees. When workers are unhappy and do not feel valued, absenteeism and the chances that the worker will go to another company increase.

Therefore, when faced with employees who decide to take advantage of an opportunity and leave their current job, the company must analyze the problem and seek a solution for mutual benefit and loyalty of its employees. It is also important that the company is clear about the personnel it hires, it may also be including people who are not suitable for the organization, with values ​​different from those of the organization, therefore they do not feel motivated by the purpose, mission and vision of the business.

Involuntary rotation

It is one that occurs without the initiative of the worker himself, that is, the initiative belongs to the company.

It can be due to different causes, including an organizational restructuring, an unfavorable evaluation of its functions, reduction of the payroll due to some crisis or adverse situation, etc.

In this case, it is important to analyze the recruitment process, as it may be incurring in a poor selection of the same.

To conclude, Chiavenato points out that “staff turnover is not a cause, but an effect, a consequence of phenomena inside and outside the company”.

Well, the economic situation of a country, the supply and demand of human resources, employment opportunities, wage policy, benefits, leadership type they largely condition the behavior of the worker.

Therefore, it should not be understood as a completely negative event, the key is to analyze that data and determine the causes that provoke them, the impact they achieve and implement timely management strategies in attracting and retaining talent.