Turnover is a fact of life for all businesses—including veterinary practices. And although turnover is common in the veterinary industry, it doesn’t make it any easier to address. Unfortunately, turnover can affect a business in several ways. In addition to the obvious loss of employees, turnover has other negative results for veterinary practices, including increased recruitment and training costs. Therefore, it is in every business’s best interest to reduce turnover. In this article, we share five tips for retaining your veterinary practice employees.
#1: Foster Positive Employer/Employee Relationships
Studies have demonstrated that employees are less likely to leave when they feel like they’re part of a team. Therefore, as a veterinary practice owner, you should routinely hold events that foster teamwork and make your employees feel valued. For example, you should consider holding office outings, holiday parties, office birthday celebrations, work anniversaries, and similar events for your employees.
#2: Listen to Your Employees
Employees often look elsewhere for employment when they feel like their voices aren’t heard. So, to improve employee retention, you should take advantage of opportunities to interact and listen to your staff. A good way to keep your employees engaged is to routinely check in with them. For example, by having regular one-on-one meetings with your employees, you provide them with an opportunity to provide you with feedback on matters they find important.
#3: Offer Competitive Salaries
Although money isn’t everything, it is an important factor affecting employee retention. To put it simply, the better you pay your employees, the more likely they are to stay with you. Therefore, you should routinely review the standards wages in your industry and adjust your employee’s salaries as necessary.
#4: Recognize Your Employees’ Efforts and Achievements
When employees feel that their efforts are going unnoticed, it usually doesn’t take long for them to seek employment elsewhere. To avoid this, it’s important to recognize your employees’ efforts and achievements. Recognition can come in a variety of forms, including:
- Positive feedback
- Increased opportunities
- Public recognition or acknowledgment
- Promotions
- Pay raises
#5: Be Cognizant of Burnout
Veterinary work is challenging, and it can have mental, emotional, and physical impacts on your employees. Therefore, to avoid losing staff, you should always remain on the lookout for signs of burnout. Common signs of burnout among veterinary industry employees include:
- Changes in behavior
- Negative talk and cynicism
- Withdrawal
- The compulsion to overwork
- Neglecting personal needs
- Depression
Contact Our Experienced Veterinary Attorneys
If you are interested in improving the overall performance of your veterinary practice, you need an experienced veterinary attorney in your corner. At Mahan Law, our longtime veterinary industry veterans want to put our substantial experience to work for you and your veterinary practice. Please contact us today to schedule a free initial consultation with one of our talented and knowledgeable attorneys.