In September 2021, 4.4 million Americans quit their jobs. This staggering statistic, combined with the fact that one in four workers had already left a job in the last 12 months, illustrates the clear reality that workers are resigning at significantly higher rates than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the turmoil the pandemic has brought to the United States economy, workers seem more willing than ever to pivot careers and quit their jobs.

Origins of the Great Resignation

In the 20 years prior to February 2021, the resignation rate in the United States had never surpassed 2.4% in any given month. However, around a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, this changed. Typically, resignation rates are seen to decrease during periods of high unemployment, as was seen in the immediate wake of the pandemic and the uncertainty it generated. More recently, experts have discussed the so-called ‘Great Resignation’, a phrase that is linked to the recent shift that has seen employees leaving their jobs to explore other options.

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Eight hours per day, 4 or 5 days per week: the average office worker spends tens of thousands of hours at work over the course of their career.

In our last blog post, we covered 5 ways to create a great office culture. Today, we’re building on these ideas and exploring some of the important steps that businesses can take to create a healthy and productive working environment for this culture to thrive in.

Because of the significant amount of time that people spend at work, employers have a duty of care towards their staff. Among other things, this entails going the extra mile to create the healthiest possible workplace environment. Here are some tips to help employers build a more productive work environment.

Adopt a holistic approach to workplace health

Health isn’t just physical; it has psychological components too. A holistic approach to health in the workplace means paying attention to:

•  Physical health: Health and safety, ergonomic furniture, wellness amenities, etc.
•  Psychosocial health: Relationships between co-workers, management style, communication, positive values, flexible hours.
•  Development: Providing professional development opportunities and incentives to be productive and set new goals.

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