Turnover and Retention. What’s the Social Care story?
“Immediacy of recruitment needs mean you just get someone in with the right skill set- values go out the window”
Across the sector, turnover is high. A number of organisations will settle for low quality workers because they need to fill shifts, they will run the risk of not being compliant and that is causing poor quality. Employers appreciate toolkits and the information and support given to promote growth and change within their businesses, but many also argue that it’s not enough.
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“It’s ridiculous to talk about retention without talking about recruitment first. You have to consider elements of the recruitment process, whether that be workforce planning, incentives packages, or even the quality of your managers- these all have an impact on retention. Recruiting the right staff results in lower turnover, but you have to get the recruitment part right- engage with candidates and employees as often as possible. If you can hold on to employers through that initial process you tend to have them for quite a few years. What it often comes down to is that workers don’t necessarily leave the care sector of the work- they leave within the first six weeks because what they are doing wasn’t explained earlier.
When recruiting, talk about career pathways as opposed to a lack of career opportunities. If you go out to the public and ask what social care is about, they have a skewed view. There are around 27 job roles and that includes managerial roles, directors, IT, cooks, chefs, gardeners, drivers… this is not understood by the general public. We need to go out and promote the sector and tell people about the different kinds of employers and roles.” Annette Baines, Skills for Care
For more information on turnover and other issues faced by the sector, read our ebook on the Roundtable held at Aston Univeristy by clicking here or visit us at the Skills for Care national conference and accolades where we will be exhibiting and presenting the award for best recruitment initiative.
