JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – This Friday is “National Employee Appreciation Day.”
Although it can sometimes be a forgotten day, it is a chance for companies to show their employees that they are valued and respected at a time when more people are reporting being burned out.
Workers, no matter what the industry, want to be seen, heard, valued and recognized.
Difference Maker Leader expert Austin Franklin says some root causes leading to workers leaving their jobs boil down to three concepts.
“A lack of appreciation, a lack of gratitude and a lack of empathy,” Franklin said.
But Franklin believes there are three easy ways to change that this National Employee Appreciation Day.
Recommendations for companies include writing thank you notes, offering bonus paid time off and donating to charities that the employee endorses.
“Having that personalized touch come in the handwritten notes, speaks volumes to employees,” said Franklin, adding, “Just having that additional paid time off really allows employees to rejuvenate, reset, and re-ignite conceptually as they move forward with the organization.”
This is happening as people are not only saying they are feeling burned out from their workload through surveys, but more people are actually reporting it.
Data from Glassdoor, which allows employees to post reviews of the companies they work for anonymously, reported burnout was up more than 40% in 2022 compared to 2019.
And according to Slack, a messaging app for businesses that connect people to necessary information, 43% of office workers say they were burned out last year.
Analytics and advisory company Gallup found one-third of workers report always or very often feeling burned out.
Franklin thinks it all comes down to those three words to combat this.
“If those can be the words that guide us, then our decisions, and how we acknowledge, our employees will always be at a victorious standpoint,” Franklin said.