How to increase employee retention in the greenhouse

Art by Allison Krieg and Adobe Firefly

New employees bring fresh energy and are highly motivated — for the first little while. Research shows that within months, their enthusiasm plummets. A recent Gallup poll found that employee engagement sits at 31%, the lowest level in a decade. Workers quit for various reasons, including inadequate wages or benefits, feeling overworked, limited opportunities for advancement, or boredom.

If you’re concerned about replacing employees, here’s how to shore up your retention strategy, boost your workers’ job satisfaction and hold on to your valuable crew.

Set new hires up for success 

In industries with lots of turnover — like horticulture — owners struggle to attract and retain employees. The key to keeping people in your corner? Engagement, says Sharlyn Lauby, president of ITM Group Inc., a Gainesville, Florida-based HR consulting firm focused on developing learning solutions that engage and retain workplace talent.

“Companies need to show employees how they contribute to business success and reward them accordingly. Remember, it’s cheaper to keep employees than to recruit,” says Lauby, the author of two talent recruitment and management books as well as the popular workplace blog HR Bartender.

Creating engagement starts during recruitment, notes Lauby, so tell potential employee what the job is like — both the good and not-so-good parts.

“Candidates expect the truth. Once they’re hired, give them a structured onboarding program that will set them up for success. It can be simple but thorough,” she explains.

Since scheduling can be a top driver, find out up-front what a potential employee prefers, suggests Tina Bemis, co-owner of Bemis Farms Nursery in central Massachusetts.

“On our applications, there are two sets of questions about availability: ‘What days and times are you available?’ and ‘What would be your perfect schedule if I could give it to you?’” says Bemis, who has four full-time staff and many part-timers.

“We start with that so I can at least give them exactly what they want, as opposed to, ‘I know you didn’t want to work this day,’ because that’s the day they’ll always call in sick.”

Make sure onboarding also includes training, support and a welcoming company culture. Pair new employees with seasoned ones willing to mentor them. Staff should also receive coaching from their managers — most employees dislike the “no news is good news” approach, says Lauby.

“If the only time a manager talks with their team is when something goes wrong, no one will want to talk with their manager. When employees do a good job, tell them,” she adds.

Perk up employee perks

“There’s plenty of research to support that employees want good pay, a competitive benefits package and flexibility. However, companies should find out what their employees want, and the best way to do that is ask them,” says Lauby.

You’ve likely heard of exit interviews, but Lauby suggests conducting “stay interviews” — finding out why employees stay with your company. You may be surprised to discover what they like best, whether it’s unlimited snacks, wellness offerings or team-building activities.

“Stay interviews tell organizations what employees love about working for the company. Managers will want to keep this in mind, especially if they’re considering changes to things like employee benefits. This also gives the organization a list of things employees like that they can share when recruiting candidates,” she adds.

Audit your retention issues and fix them

Consultants like Lauby work with organizations to identify and solve problems. That begins by analyzing when turnover occurs the most.

“For example, is it at less than a year? Less than six months? Also, what do employees say is their reason for leaving?” says Lauby.

Once you have collected that data, put it to good use and be prepared to act on the information you receive, she adds.

“There’s nothing worse than asking employees for feedback and then doing nothing with the information,” she says.

For example, if employees want a better benefits package, and you hire a consultant who agrees your offering isn’t competitive, don’t ignore all the feedback and research and then expect employee retention to improve. Instead, start small and introduce new programs over time and as the budget allows, Lauby suggests.

Art by Allison Krieg and Adobe Firefly

Employee retention is a by-product of a strong, supportive company culture.

Work on improving your company culture

Chesapeake Nurseries was established in Salisbury, Maryland, in the 1960s and has about 100 employees; many have been with the company for years. General Manager and Director of Horticulture Matt Palmieri believes the organization’s high employee retention is a by-product of a strong, supportive company culture.

“From our base-level production and field workers up to our management staff, we try to create an environment where people feel respected and appreciated,” says Palmieri.

“Having a sense of ownership over what they do is important, so we foster that for our workers. With labor harder to come by, we know that if we want the business to continue growing, we can’t just throw more bodies at the problem. We have to find ways to make the people we already have feel more valued.”

Prioritize training & development

While wages are a top consideration for employees, Palmieri suggests additional ways to invest in your people. Training and development that can lead to growth opportunities within the organization ranks high, so give your workers time to attend conferences and create a fund to help pay for continuing education. This not only helps them scale up their skills but also keeps people motivated and engaged.

“Every year, a portion of our budget is set aside for employee appreciation and development; we send management staff and experienced crew leaders to trade shows like MANTS and Cultivate and conferences like IPPS so they can broaden their horizons,” says Palmieri.

“We foot the bill for employees to continue their education and get undergraduate degrees. If an employee comes to us with an interest, we try to back those endeavors and support our workers to develop those skills.”

Switch things up

“Because we’re retail growers, one of the things that makes the job fun here is it’s never the same. You might have to learn a task that you only do three days out of the year — making bows, crafting something, planting one particular plant or staking black-eyed Susan vines,” says Bemis.

“As an owner, it’s a million times easier to pigeonhole: This person does this well, so make them do it all the time, but they get bored. So, I ask them. After they’ve been working here awhile, I ask what their favorite jobs are, and I try to vary things and let them do that.”

A little appreciation goes a long way

Palmieri’s company commits resources and organizes team-building and staff appreciation events throughout the year.

“We have free season tickets for a local Minor League Baseball team for our employees to take advantage of and sign up for, and we take everybody out to a ballgame once a year and book the picnic deck,” he says.

“We also do company picnics throughout the year where we’ll shut production down at lunchtime, pay everybody until the end of the day and throw a cookout on the property.”

Palmieri hands out branded T-shirts and hats to promote company pride and hosts a Christmas party for workers and their families.

“Employee retention comes back to money, so we have a profit-sharing program and bonus structure that’s paid out three times a year,” he explains.

“A set percentage of the nursery’s profits is put into a pool and distributed among the people that work here. It’s an effective means of making sure we acknowledge that the company’s success is based on attracting and keeping good talent and rewarding that talent when we find them.”

Wendy Helfenbaum is an award-winning journalist, content provider and TV producer based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Contact her at wendy@taketwoproductions.ca.