1. Want to retain your
best employees?
Remember, money isn’t everything. Reduce workweeks.
Make no mistake. Salary is important to every Other countries do it with great success, but
worker in America, and throughout the world. America has been reluctant to change its
But just because your company’s “cost-of-living” standard workweek. Until now. More and more
raises are better than most, doesn’t mean you’re companies are permitting employees to work
doing everything you can to satisfy employees. four, 10-hour days a week. And the results are
And you could pay the price by losing them to surprising — employees accomplish more in a
other companies that will. reduced work week than the usual 9 to 5, five
days a week. It seems that Fridays may be even
Besides being an effective manager, here are more unproductive than anyone realized.
other ways you can compensate your staff that
go beyond salary increases: Allow job-sharing.
Take better advantage of the part-time work-
Provide on-site day care.
force and allow job sharing. A recent study of
There is a day care crisis in America. In this working parents with small children found that
country, 10 million children under the age of 6 job-sharing was considered a highly attractive
do not have a parent home during the day option when considering an employment
because of their work. The same is true for 13 opportunity. According to a report in Human
million children between 6 and 13. And many Resources Executive, two employees sharing
parents are finding it increasingly more difficult one job are more productive than one employee
to locate satisfactory day care, let alone afford it. working full time.
But according to recent studies, corporations Provide flexible-hour alternatives.
who do get involved with child care report lower
In a study of American workers by the Gallup
turnover, lower absenteeism among parents
Organization, it found that a vast majority
whose children attend the center, and better
of employees consider flexible hours an
recruitment efforts. Those facts alone should
important part of a job. In fact, one study found
make providing day care benefits worth your
that two-thirds of working men and woman
consideration.
would reject a promotion if it required them

2. Want to retain your best employees?
to spend less time with their families, and Provide opportunities for employees to attend
would consider flexible hours an attractive seminars that will improve their skills. Hold in-
option. By developing a work schedule that house seminars if costs necessitate. To foster
meets both your needs and your employees, career guidance, set up a mentorship program
productivity will increase, absenteeism will in your company that pairs high-level executives
decrease, and employee morale will soar. with young professionals.
Consider these benefits, and keep your options
Do what you can to show you’re willing to invest
open to other ways you can meet employees’
company resources to help your employees
unique needs.
move up the corporate ladder, and they will stay
Let certain employees work at home. to see how far they can go. Guaranteed.
Sounds risky, but studies show that produc-
Encourage physical fitness.
tivity increases from 20 to 40 percent when
High cholesterol and high blood pressure
people work at home. Why? It seems that when
counts are amongst a corporation’s worst
employees are based out of the house they
enemies. Keeping your employees healthy
work at their peak times with fewer interruptions
should be a major priority. Many companies
and distractions, have more freedom from peer
pay for employees’ health club memberships,
pressures and productivity norms, spend less
offer rewards for employees that quit smoking,
time and energy dealing with the hassle of
and hold aerobic classes during work hours.
commuting, and miss fewer workdays.
Always find new ways to
And with laptops, blackberries and teleconfer-
compensate excellence.
encing technology available at reasonable
cost, there’s practically nothing an employee When employees reward your company
can’t do at home. with outstanding results, reciprocate the
effort. Some companies provide incentives
Emphasize career development. such as trips to tropical islands, or company
Encourage employees to consider improving cars, or home computers. Don’t offer the same
their education, and offer tuition reimbursement incentives over and over again. Seek out
if their selected course of study can benefit your different ways to reward your employees to
company in the long run. Be sure to set up maintain an edge on competitors. And whatever
a system that ensures employees won’t “skip the incentive, make sure it meets a real need
town” once their degrees are well in hand. of the employee, whether it’s a stress-relieving
family vacation (if there’s such a thing!), or
a voucher for a selected day care facility.
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