Nonprofit Performance 360 Magazine Vol 5 No 1

TINA MYLES Executive Office

Addressing Employee Turnover and Retention

Pressley Ridge, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is a leading nonprofit serving 7,300 children and families in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia, and Delaware.Our mission, to do whatever it takes to create success for children and families, is delivered through a dedicated staff of professionals in the areas of foster care, adoption, education, and mental and behavioral health services. For the past 185 years, our innovative programming has provided the foundation for building stronger families, while constantly evolving to meet the needs of the community. From helping families in the community, to providing foster care services and educating children with special needs, including autism and deafness, Pressley Ridge empowers kids and families with the ability and confidence to succeed. Of our 1,100 current employees, 76 have worked for us for over twenty years, and two have over 40 years of service each. While these employment retention statistics are impressive, we have approximately 279 employees (26%) who have been employed for less than one year, and 677 (65%) who have been employed for less than five years. Pressley Ridge struggles with voluntary employee turnover, a very common trend among social service nonprofits, but we have set goals to solve this issue. On average, 30% of the people we hire choose to leave the organization. New hires, those working for us for less than one year, and those working in a residential service line leave at even greater rates, 40% and 60%, respectively.

various service lines and positions, and have made adjustments in salaries accordingly.We are in a unique position compared to other nonprofits.While we share a commonality with other social service organizations by having issues with employee retention due to lack of competitive salaries, emotionally demanding work conditions and varying schedules, we have found other ways to compensate our employees. We have a comprehensive benefits package, retirement matching, employee wellness programs and incentives, education reimbursement opportunities, and regular promotion opportunities. Additionally, we are redesigning our residential services to address employee workload and job stress. We have instituted succession planning and a Rising Stars program, identifying future leaders and providing them with opportunities for further knowledge and exposure.We have focused on showing greater appreciation to staff for a job well done, and provided advanced educational opportunities for staff at reduced or no cost. We are proud of our 76 tenured employees, and longevity is certainly one of our recruiting tools that directly relates to our overall success, although there is room for improvement. By fiscal year 2020, we hope to reduce voluntary turnover to 20% or less, and continue to share our processes with like-minded organizations so they can accomplish the same. Tina Myles, Esq., is the Chief Human Resources Officer at Pressley Ridge. She is licensed to practice law in both Ohio and Pennsylvania. Additionally, she holds Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and SHRM- SCP certifications. www.pressleyridge.org

People leave because direct care is a hard job with limited compensation, high job stress, a demanding workload, and limited opportunity for advancement. National estimates show that 30-45% of all child welfare staff leave within two years. Voluntary turnover has both direct and indirect costs. Organizations spend an estimated 30-70% of an employee’s salary for advertising, interviewing time, background and reference checks, and training to replace direct care staff. Indirect costs include such things as low staff morale and increased workloads for remaining staff. Employee turnover also has an impact on the type of work we do and on the children and families we serve. Success comes from the relationship of staff with clients. If that relationship changes over the course of treatment, client progress can be impacted. Reducing voluntary employee turnover is a priority and strategic goal.We have dedicated staff in our operations and human resources departments who are dedicated to solving this problem. We have set goals for fiscal year 2018 in three separate areas related to reducing voluntary turnover: overall, new hire, and residential service. We are trending to meet two of the three, with new hire turnover proving to be the most difficult. In working on solutions to these issues, we have conducted compensation studies for

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