Employee turnover rate refers to the number or percentage of workers who leave an organization and are replaced by new employees. It is a severe problem in many companies or organizations worldwide. Therefore, it is a global phenomenon. 

Types of Employee Turnover

• Voluntary Turnover

Voluntary Turnover occurs when employees willingly choose to vacate their positions. Employees might choose to do this if they are dissatisfied with their position, have accepted a better job offer, or want a career change.

• Involuntary Turnover

Involuntary Turnover occurs when an employee is terminated from a position. Employees may be let go for a wide range of reasons, including unsatisfactory job performance or inappropriate behavior.

• Desirable Turnover

Desirable Turnover occurs when an organization fires or loses underperforming employees and replaces them with new hires.

• Undesirable Turnover

Undesirable Turnover occurs when an organization loses its top-performing employees.

 

Differences between Voluntary and Involuntary Turnover: 

Voluntary Turnover	Involuntary Turnover
Employees voluntarily leave the organization.	Employer terminates employee’s employment.
Happens due to better job opportunities, prolonged dissatisfaction in current job, or certain personal reasons.	Happens due to poor performance, disciplinary issues, or restructuring of organization.
A natural part of employee lifecycle.	Not a natural part of employee lifecycle.
Beneficial for both employees and organization.	Negative consequences for morale and productivity, and brand reputation.
Minimize by offering competitive compensation packages, foster a positive work culture, and opportunities for career growth and development.	Minimize it by providing clear expectations and performance standards, offering training to employees and effectively communicating performance issues.

 

How to calculate employee turnover rate? 

To calculate, you need the following:  

• Time period for which the employee turnover rate is to be calculated, for instance, annually, monthly, quarterly. 
• The number of employees who left the organization during that period. 
• The average number of employees during the period. To calculate the average number of employees, add the total employees at the start of the period with the total employees at the end of the period and divide the sum by two. 

Now, divide the number of employees who leave the organization by the average number of employees and then multiply the result by 100 to get the employee turnover rate as a percentage.

Employee turnover rate =  (Number of employees who left / Average number of employees) x 100%

Here’s an example: 

Suppose you want to calculate the employee turnover rate for a company for the first quarter of the year. During that period, the company had 400 employees at the beginning of the quarter and 420 employees at the end of the quarter. Additionally, 20 employees left the company during the quarter.  

So, Employee Turnover Rate = [20 / {(400 + 420)/2}] x 100% = [20 / 410] x 100% = 4.88% 

 

Main Reasons for Employee Turnover in 2024

There are several reasons behind employees leaving the organization, and they can vary depending on the industry, job, and organization. The seven main reasons are discussed below:

• Poor Leadership

Employees are more likely to leave the organization if they do not have faith in their managers. Poor leadership also results in lack of communication, ineffective management, and a lack of proper direction, also leads to low morale, burnout and frustration among employees. 

• Lack of Development Opportunities

If an organization does not provide opportunities for employees to grow and develop their skills, they mostly like to seek employment elsewhere. This happens because employees feel they are not valued, and their growth opportunities are limited, resulting in disengagement. 

• Low Job Satisfaction levels

Employees who are satisfied with their jobs are more likely to stay with an organization, while the ones who are unhappy are more likely to leave. A few factors contributing to this phenomenon are low pay, long working hours, poor working conditions, etc. 

• Compensation and Benefits

If employees are fairly remunerated for their work, they do not seek employment elsewhere. In addition, benefit plans such as health insurance, retirement plans, and paid time off can also impact employee retention. 

• Limited Flexibility

 Employees with a limited work-life balance who feel they cannot devote time to their personal needs and more responsibilities are likely to leave the organization. Organizations can offer flexible work arrangements, like telecommuting, flexible schedules, and work-from-home options.

• Poor Organizational Culture

A toxic work environment lacking communication, trust, and respect among employees can lead to higher employee resignations. On the other hand, organizations with a positive work culture that values employees, nurtures collaboration, and provides a supportive work environment are more likely to retain employees. 

• Job Insecurity

When employees feel their job is at risk or the organization is unstable, they are more likely to seek employment elsewhere. Employers can reduce turnover rates by providing job security and stability. 

How to Improve Employee Retention with HR Software? 

Turnover of Employees are costly, negatively impacting productivity, morale, and profitability. One of the effective ways to overcome it is by using HR software that can help streamline processes, improve communication, and enhance employee engagement.

HR software influences turnover in the following ways: 

1) Automate all HR processes

HR software saves time and reduces errors by automating mundane HR processes like onboarding, offboarding, payroll and benefits administration. It also facilitates HR teams to focus on employee engagement and retention. 

2) Streamline Performance Management

They aid in streamlining the performance management process by automating goal setting, tracking progress, and conducting performance reviews. This helps employees understand their roles and responsibilities, improving their performance and increasing engagement. 

3) Enhance Communication

Effective communication among employees and managers, HR teams, and other stakeholders due to a centralized communication platform with ease of access. This can be achieved by HR software. 

4) Provide Training and Development Opportunities

HR software can help employees to develop their skills and knowledge by providing access to various online training courses, learning management software and other valuable resources. This increases motivation and leads to increased retention. 

5) Foster Collaboration

Easy team collaboration with access to shared calendars, task lists, and project management tools. This results in an increase in employee productivity and engagement. 

6) Implement Employee Reward and Recognition Programs

HR software provides various tools to reward and recognize employees. This results in increased employee morale and motivation, increasing employee retention. 

7) Improve Work-Life Balance

With HR software employees can manage their schedules, track their time, and request time off. So, employees feel they are working at their own will, resulting in decreased turnover and increased engagement. 

8) Conduct Employee Surveys

Surveys help gather employee feedback on factors like job satisfaction, work environment and so on. This allows organizations to identify the areas of improvement and frame strategies to increase employee retention. 

9) Provide Opportunities for Feedback

HR software offers various tools to provide feedback to managers and HR teams, making employees feel valued and increasing employee retention. 

10) Using Analytics

HR software also offers a wide range of analytics and reporting tools that help HR teams to assess their retention strategies and make improvements to decrease turnover and increase engagement. 

 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) 

Q1. What is responsible for employee turnover? 

Various factors are responsible for this phenomenon, like 

1. Lack of job satisfaction
2. Compensation and Benefits
3. Work-life Balance
4. Organizational Culture
5. Poor leadership
6. Limited career development opportunities. 

Q2. How can HRs reduce turnover? 

HRs can reduce turnover by implementing a wide range of initiatives, 

• Creating a positive work environment. 
• Attract and retain top talent by providing competitive compensation and benefits packages. 
• Provide career development opportunities through training programs. 
• Exit interviews to gain insight into the reason behind employees’ departures. 

Q3. What is the ROI of Employee Retention?

The return on investment (ROI) of employee retention is the financial benefit an organization gains by reducing turnover, as high employee turnover can result in added costs which significantly affect the organization’s bottom line.