New Jersey has the lowest quit rate—the number of monthly quits versus the percentage of total employment—nationwide, which indicates that employers are doing something right to keep their employees. CareerCloud analysts found that among all the states, New Jersey had the lowest quit-rate increase in 2021 at 18%. In comparison, New Hampshire had the most significant leap in quit rate at 55%. The state’s low employee turnover rate helps businesses save money on recruitment and training costs while boosting their overall productivity.
So what exactly is it that effective leaders are doing in New Jersey? We dive into this below.
New Jersey’s employment status
New Jersey is still in the process of economic recovery from years of economic downturns. But despite reporting modest unemployment recovery rates, employee retention in this state remains fairly high due to lower incidents of workers quitting. This is welcome news amidst the mass exodus of Americans due to work strictures of the past few years.
While the shutting down of businesses forced millions of Americans out of their jobs, many more handed in their resignations in a phenomenon called “The Great Resignation.” The rush to the exit of 8.8 million workers can be attributed to factors like wage dissatisfaction, health and safety concerns, a desire for remote work, and government subsidies.
The 18% quit rate in New Jersey is low compared to the 74% overall quit rate in the United States, which has been climbing steadily over the past decade. Although there was indeed an uptick in resignations in the state, it is considerably less pronounced than in the rest of the country.
What leaders are doing to retain talent
In the past few years, business leaders in New Jersey have made tremendous strides to retain talent. Here are some of their strategies:
1. Investing in upskilling
When companies focus on hiring new talent, they risk neglecting their current employees. Business leaders in this state have provided upskilling opportunities for their employees through further education and certificate programs. A task force in New Jersey even developed a framework to reskill and reshape the workforce amidst the economic disruptions of the past few years. The Focus NJ task force report recommends expanding partnerships between business, academia, and government to ensure equitable access to workforce development opportunities.
2. Creating internal talent mobility
Competitive salaries are essential for employees to stay in their organizations, but it’s not their only priority. Internal talent mobility is equally crucial to them. They want to be prioritized for new job opportunities, training support, and positions. With over 300,000 job openings in New Jersey, hiring existing employees is a cost-effective and logical approach to boost retention efforts. Internal talent mobility is one of the strategies leaders in New Jersey use to complement salary raises and upskilling opportunities.
3. Offering competitive compensation
The cost of living in New Jersey has rapidly risen over the past few years, with gas prices spiking 44% and essential goods like poultry climbing 10%. By continuously matching salaries with inflation and offering benefits that are difficult to refuse, leaders can retain the talent they’ve worked so hard to recruit. A sound compensation strategy through variable pay or quarterly incentives is undeniably crucial in increasing retention and keeping the quit rates low in this state.
New Jersey’s low quit rate puts a well-deserved spotlight on employers’ strategies to maintain their workforce’s satisfaction and fulfillment. The state’s example shows that effective and responsive leadership is still the best way to retain top talent.
