1) Simply put: When you take care of your employees, they will take care of your business. We call businesses that focus on people through Decent Work practices Ethical Employers. You’ve worked hard to start and scale your business. How it continues to grow will impact your future success and exit strategy.
2) Think of your favourite businesses – why do you enjoy visiting or buying from them? Most people will answer customer service and great products. A great product can often stand on its own – but customer service is always important to maintain a great operation.
3) Think again of that business – do you interact with the same employees or is it someone new every time? Most customers want to develop relationships with key employees – there’s no feeling like becoming a regular! Businesses with high turnover don’t have the opportunity to develop these relationships with their customers.
4) Hiring employees opens up a whole new world of opportunities. Paid sick days, fair scheduling and more than minimum wages are foundational building blocks to create great employee engagement. Combined with strong company culture, these tools help turn businesses into great places to work. This encourages expert level employees to stay on board and drive profitable repeat business.
Where should you start?
BWA Member businesses with paid sick days, more than minimum wages & fair scheduling practices report less turnover and greater employee productivity + morale. When employees are happier, they perform better. It’s even becoming more common to see these employees become part of succession planning – giving you an in-house exit strategy.
We recommend starting with paid sick days, fair scheduling and more than minimum wages. Keep reading to find out why.
Paid Sick Days
Paid Sick Days are one of the simplest tools a business can adopt. PSDs offer multiple benefits:
- Reduced workplace virus / cold spread
- Avoid preventable downtime
- Improve staff morale
PSDs can be one of the best tools aside from increased pay that contribute to employee retention. In fact, PSDs are proven to reduce workplace injuries and increase employee productivity.
Businesses that adopt Paid Sick Days often report increased employee satisfaction, performance, and less overall employee downtime.
Fair Scheduling
Remember that first job you ever had? If you’re anything like most people, it probably sucked. You were expected to show up 15 minutes early and leave after closing – both unpaid. Or you might remember being called off a shift at the last minute – without being paid.
Fair Scheduling is:
- Preparing a schedule at least two weeks in advance
- Paying for same day call-offs
- Paying employees to open/close
Evidence shows that when you create a consistent schedule, employees call in sick less often and staff retention improves.
More Than Minimum Wages
You and your employees work hard to bring your business success. One of the simplest and best ways to keep them happy is higher wages. Figuring out the right balance for your business is important to developing high performing employees that drive profitability.
Why more than minimum wage?
- Reduced absenteeism
- Higher morale
- Lower turnover leading to increased sales
While Living Wages have become popular (for good reason), not every business can afford to pay. Paying more than minimum is proven to drastically reduce turnover and develop highly productive and profitable employees.
There isn’t a one-size fits all approach to ethical employment. Like most things in business, a little trial and error is necessary to find the right approach for your enterprise. Here are a few steps you can take to identifying what is currently working at your business:
1) Discussing current practices with employees
a) Identifying what’s working well
b) Noting areas for improvement
2) Asking your team what types of benefits are important to them
a) Is it higher wages?
b) How many paid sick days fit your business model?
c) What type of scheduling would optimize your opening hours?
When you’re holding these discussions, it’s important to stay open and transparent. Just because you’re discussing an idea doesn’t mean it’s going to work. Setting out a timeline with your team is important to manage expectations and get them invested in helping you grow while exploring the best balance for you and them.
How Do I Launch These Programs at My Business?
Does this already sound like you?
What are recommended minimums for my business?
Every business is different and you should scale based on your current capability. The BWA believes every business should have or be working toward:
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- Hourly wages at least 15% above the provincial minimum wage for all staff – a living wage is best.
- 3 employer-paid sick days for all staff (part & full-time). Try our Paid Sick Day calculator to cost this out at your business.
- Shifts scheduled at least 2 weeks in advance, and hours offered to part-time staff before hiring new staff.
Many business owners start with just one of these practices and work toward the others when possible. Other business owners offer living wages or full health benefits. Wherever you land, these ethical employment practices combined are proven to improve retention & productivity while improving the chances of your business succeeding long-term.
BWA members are on the ground floor and already experiencing benefits like increased retention and sales. Want to learn more? Read our Business Case for Ethical Employment or get in touch.