Business Perspective: Take care of your employees welfare to yield results

I was very impressed by one of the mobile provider companies in east Africa whose employees are taken care of so well that they do not leave the company even when they get well paying jobs in other companies. My understanding is that this company pays so well and also makes sure that all the employees are served breakfast, lunch and those working late are served dinner not forgetting the in- between coffee breaks! Nursing mothers are not worried about the welfare of their babies when at work, because the company has an in-built nursery for their babies and full time care givers. This I found to be very interesting. Now, according to this CEO he found out that employees spend most of the time worried about food or their children. Since a company pays an employee for his time, in return he decided that the company should utilise on the time of the employee at the work station by helping that employee worry about some things which occupy most of their time and mind the better part of the day, by taking care of such things. But then what exactly is employee welfare? Employee welfare in general, are benefits that an employee must receive from his/her company, like allowances, housing for those companies which provides, transportation, medical, insurances, food, bonuses, sick leave, maternity leave and vacation are also part of this and even holidays for other companies. Many companies care less about the welfare of their employees resulting to poor performance at work. Some big companies have built in recreational centres for their employees so as to save the time the employee will use on that particular sport. These companies have known the secrets of what makes their employee happy and thus retain them for a longer period of time. Each company must take care of its employees. For example my company makes sure that each employee has taken tea throughout the day as to when they need it, and also serve them lunch in the office which saves the company a lot of wasted time; if at all anyone went out for lunch. Some times companies fear committing themselves just in case the economy takes a plunge. Tough times don’t last for long, but enduring the same seems almost endless in the process. For the management and employees of organizations who have been struck by the whip of recession, it is would still take some time for the ordeal to end. In the meantime, it is the responsibility of the management to ensure that employee welfare initiatives should not be put on the back burner in the name of cutting costs. Being prudent in spending is the key here, with constant communication to ward off adverse rumours and protect employee sentiments. It is not an easy task however to look beyond the profit margins and focus on employee wellbeing in times of shrinking bottom line, but then that is perhaps the need of the times. It is important to have a long-term perspective of things to ensure that good people do not go away when they are needed the most by the organization. There is the need to look beyond short-term profits and ensure employee welfare. It is also the time to build real loyalty. Organizations which want to do business even after a period of loss would need to continuously create and maintain the bond between its management and the employees’ goals and welfare. In fact, employees would gladly accept cost cutting measures and would even contribute to it. Albeit, they need to be very clear about strategic importance of the tough measures. They need to be reassured constantly that their welfare is being considered important. Developing and maintaining the right communication process is integral in these trying times. Any slight negligence or lack of vigilance might result in a situation that might lead to total deterioration of the work culture and employee morale. It is also the time to earn employee goodwill and loyalty, particularly at a time when the rate of attrition is at all time low. “Team spirits and collaboration should be encouraged among employees. Initiatives like celebrating success/achievements in small ways go a long way in raising the confidence and morale of the team. Also, employee of week/ month should be identified and appreciated. Organizations that resort to cost cutting measures directed at employees without caring about their welfare, loose good talent, besides spoiling their brand image in the market. Besides, higher attrition may impact the business and clients, which will further have a negative impact on the overall business strategy of the company. Ends