The Straw that Broke HR’s Back

Stress Amid the Great Resignation

Though it’s been a rough two years for everyone, HR professionals have experienced unprecedented levels of stress. In addition to the complexities of managing workplace virus protocols, HR professionals are feeling the brunt of employee turnover as the Great Resignation continues. COVID-19’s initial disruption caused widespread job losses as companies tried to stay afloat. Then, as the virus perpetuated, employees suffered from burnout, leading to voluntary resignations in record numbers.

In November of 2021, the U.S. saw its highest quit rate since the Bureau of Labor Statistics began tracking the data in December 2000. After peaking in November, the quit rate remains significantly elevated. January 2022 brought an additional 4.25 million resignations, compared to January 2021’s 3.31 million. Yikes.    

Before we go any further, let’s take a look at the sources of our information. To develop this article, we looked at two surveys conducted last year. It’s important to note that this research was conducted prior to the introduction of the Omicron variant, which complicated things further. 

• HR Executive’s annual “What’s Keeping HR Up at Night?” survey, which polled 820 HR professionals in November 2021 
• SHRM’s 2021 Surviving the Great Resignation survey, which included responses from 200 executives, 1,150 employees, and more than 2,200 HR professionals from mid to late summer 2021 

Employee Dissatisfaction

In many ways, the Great Resignation has culminated into the perfect storm for employers and employees alike. Given that it’s now a candidate’s job market, employees feel empowered to look for better opportunities — and rightfully so.

Employees who responded to the SHRM survey cited three top reasons they’re considering a new job: better compensation (53%), better work-life balance (42%), and better benefits (36%). As coworkers leave to pursue new opportunities, the remaining employees are forced to keep things running smoothly. The SHRM survey also indicated that 52% of remaining workers reported taking on more work and responsibilities, and 30% said they are struggling to complete their work. 

With those factors in the mix, at the time SHRM published its survey in October 2021, more than 2 in 5 (41%) U.S. workers were actively searching or planning to search for a new job in the next few months. The Great Resignation is here, and it doesn’t appear to be losing steam.

The Effect on HR Professionals

With so much employee turnover, it’s no surprise HR Executive found that 60% of the respondents identified recruiting and retaining talent as one of their top challenges. In fact, when asked to rank how concerned they were about losing talent over the next 12 months on a scale from one to five (five being extremely concerned), 46% of HR professionals ranked it as a five, and 33% ranked it as a four. 

In addition to the stress created by high turnover, HR Executive’s survey illustrated that HR professionals have encountered the additional strain of managing compliance with vaccine mandates (16%) and improving company culture (12%). Plus, according to SHRM, the desire to retain talent has inspired businesses to reevaluate and adjust employee benefits to be more competitive. This includes changes to things like pay, bonuses, employee referral programs, and flexible working arrangements, all of which involve help from HR.

Due to these pain points and many more, 86% of HR professionals say their stress has increased in the last year, and 44% of individuals say their stress level has increased “dramatically,” according to HR Executive.   

How to Manage Stress

So, how can HR professionals combat stress during the ongoing Great Resignation? Consider the advice you’d give an employee who raised the same concerns.

• Need some time off work to unwind? Follow the PTO request procedures. 
• Have someone you can voice your frustrations to? Be sure to check out our mental health offerings. 
• Struggling to set boundaries? Schedule time to chat with your manager. 

In short, take advantage of your company’s employee benefits — they’re there for a reason. You are your number one priority.   

How can colleagues help?

Though the Great Resignation is no reason to celebrate, it does present some opportunities to better tap into your team so the burden is better dispersed. What’s the easiest way to do this? Empower your employees.

Consider ways that others can help lessen your load. Here are some examples.

• If you find that you’re fielding a lot of questions related to benefits and leaves, make sure the pertinent information is posted somewhere — like the company intranet — and that employees know where to find it.
• If you spend a lot of time on conflict resolution, perhaps supervisors / managers would benefit from a training course  — or maybe it’s time to refresh your conflict resolution policy.  
• Can you establish committees to help with things like office holiday events, employee outings, and interest groups? This will enable you to move things off your plate while providing employees with more opportunities for engagement. 

Most importantly, remember that you are not in this alone. Unfortunately, HR professionals everywhere can relate to the stress of COVID-19 and the ongoing Great Resignation. And, if there’s one thing we know about HR professionals, it’s that you’re great at problem solving. You are resourceful. You are appreciated. And you’ve got this.