The employee attrition rate in India is at an all time high. The Hewitt Associates’ annual Asia Pacific Salary Increase survey for 2009-10 pegs the turnover rate in India at 13.8 per cent. This high employee turnover rate results in both direct and indirect losses to a company and causes continued and unwarranted pressure on the HR department. I believe that given the current job opportunities the attrition rates would continue to see an upward trend in the near future.
Before we discuss a solution for this problem it is important to understand the causes leading to employee defection. Most of the causes revolve around the level of satisfaction the job provides to the employee. Job satisfaction can be a factor of salary provided, level of workload, opportunity for growth, level of skill competency and level of job security.
I would assume compensation as being the most important factor for employee defection. Resolving job compensation issue can be a tricky situation wherein a consensus needs to be reached between what the company is willing to pay and the employees’ perceived value of him. However either of the attrition factors cannot be held in isolation. It is always a combined effect, for example if a company invests in improving employee skills then a progressive employee may not mind a lower salary. On the other hand, low job compensation coupled with excess work hours and no opportunity for growth is a sure shot recipe for losing the employee.
One more not so obvious reason leading to employee defection is the lack of job skills. Most employees exaggerate their competence for a given sill set. This allows the candidate to be hired, however as the work load begins to mount and deadlines are set, there develops a fear of getting fired. Rather than get in a situation where his/her skill sets are questioned the employee begins to seek alternate job opportunities and defects ASAP.
Most of the HR manager may be aware of the above causes of employee attrition and may also have the necessary steps in place to prevent the same. However the implementation of a thorough employee background check during the hiring process can provide insight into the candidate’s professional background and personality.
The valuable information provided by a thorough background check arms the HR manager with the information for making critical hiring decisions and allows filtering of candidates that are a mismatch to the organizational culture.
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