One quarter of U.S. employees report that work is their number one stressor. Stressed employees don’t just quit; they are also less productive. The American Institute of Stress estimates that 1 million employees are absent each day due to stress. It’s a trend that’s costing U.S. industries over $300 billion in lost productivity and causing an increasing mental health crisis among workers.

Turnover in the senior living industry isn’t new, but the challenge intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic and has never fully recovered. Data published by The National Investment Center for Seniors Housing and Care (NIC) in May of 2022 estimates that annual turnover in the industry had reached a staggering 85%. High turnover is costly, and it’s not just the hard costs of recruiting and hiring. The constant stream of new faces impacts morale and your community’s reputation. Residents and their families rely on familiar caregivers and service providers. Losing them impacts resident trust and satisfaction.

How can senior living providers reduce stress in the workplace to improve retention? Here are five places to start.

1. Define Workplace Boundaries 

The first step to addressing workplace stress is to help employees define proper boundaries between work and home life. Clearly communicate your expectations regarding work hours, response times and behaviors. If you don’t expect responses to emails, text messages or phone calls during your employee’s off hours (except as they relate to scheduling) make that clear. It’s also important to respect these boundaries yourself, such as not contacting employees outside work hours or during their breaks unless it’s absolutely critical. If an issue arises with these boundaries, ensure that you address it immediately. 

When employees have a clear understanding of their roles and manager expectations, it eliminates uncertainty and ambiguity. Uncertainty and ambiguity can lead to high levels of stress, as employees may experience confusion or frustration about whether they're meeting expectations. 

2. Encourage Collaborative Relationships

Mutual respect and collaboration among employees should be encouraged. Model clear, open and respectful communication. Employees should actively listen to each other and share ideas. If feedback is requested, it should be given in a way that is constructive. Look for tasks to assign team members that require a group effort. Schedule employees together who may not work together often. Connecting with other employees not only helps form positive relationships between coworkers that improve retention, but gives employees a network of colleagues they can rely on to coordinate shifts or tackle larger projects. Emphasize the importance of teamwork and place a value on it. Recognize those who demonstrate great teamwork, not just singular star performers.

Consider organizing celebrations both inside and outside of work spaces. Celebrating team accomplishments, birthdays, or holidays gives the team an opportunity to build relationships outside of day-to-day operations. Is there an opportunity to hold a team building event at a local venue or organize a team happy hour?

Resident and employee relationships can also be a source of joy and satisfaction for both parties. Employees often find deep satisfaction in knowing they are making a positive impact on the lives of the residents. These relationships can be encouraged, and even evolve into genuine friendships.

3. Carve Out Time to Decompress

When workplace stress is bottled up over time, it can explode without warning among your employees — often at inappropriate times and in inappropriate ways. This can have a detrimental effect on your entire team, lowering morale and reducing trust in the organization as a whole. Certain stressful situations may be better managed by giving employees time to decompress. This could be due to a disagreement with another employee or a difficult confrontation with a resident. Instead of ordering employees back to work after such an incident, consider offering them time to cool down and self-regulate before returning to their duties. Remember that giving an employee fifteen minutes to decompress can mean the difference between keeping and losing that employee.

4. Create Consistent Work Schedules

Employees who feel overworked and overwhelmed will be more stressed. The senior living field is extremely fast paced, and turnover issues make scheduling a challenge. However, senior living providers should strive to work with employees to create consistent work schedules. Balancing work with personal responsibilities is a challenge for everyone, and can be extremely stressful. From medical appointments and family gatherings to transportation and childcare, this delicate balance can be easily upset. The more predictable an employee’s work schedule, the easier it will be to coordinate responsibilities outside of work and reduce overall stress.

5. Check In Regularly

Without regular check-ins, you may not know an employee is experiencing workplace stress until they quit. The exit interview isn’t the best time to discover this! Effective stress management in the workplace requires that supervisors check in regularly with employees to touch base about their workload and stress levels. Sometimes just listening to an employee’s concerns can go a long way toward making them feel valued and respected. Also consider reviewing company policies related to work hours and communication with your human resources team regularly, ensuring that these are kept up to date. Employee and business needs and expectations are changing all the time. To attract and retain employees, it’s critical to ensure your policies reflect this.

Reducing Workplace Stress with LCS

Explore proactive ways to address stress in the workplace with Life Care Services, An LCS Company, and its human resources department. We have over a half century of experience in senior living operations management and connecting communities with the resources they need to enhance their senior living community’s culture and boost employee retention. Contact us at 515-642-1744, or complete the contact form below.