Employee morale is pivotal to the success of any organization. Simply stated, morale is how your employees feel about their work, your organization, and how it all impacts their lives. When morale is high, employees are engaged and work well together. But when morale is low, their motivation decreases, leading to a drop in productivity.
A recent engagement survey by Gallup revealed some distressing statistics: only 31% of U.S. workers are engaged on the job, while 17% are actively disengaged. This is the lowest percentage since 2017.
Employee Engagement is the Canary in the Coal Mine
When engagement falls, motivation goes with it — leading to lower morale, increased turnover and ultimately, a decline in productivity. According to Gallup, disengagement cost the world economy $438 billion in 2024.
It’s more crucial than ever to keep your workforce engaged and motivated.
The Building Blocks of Employee Morale
While preferences may fluctuate among different groups, these are the main factors that motivate workers:
- Wages. This is consistently one of the most important factors impacting job satisfaction. Real wages have declined 0.7 percent since 2021. However, things appear to be improving as wages have outpaced inflation for the last two years.
- Flexible schedules. The percentage of remote-only workers has declined from its peak in 2020 to stabilize at approximately 10% of the total U.S. workforce. While most employees may not expect to work from home exclusively, they view flexibility in some form as a perk, whether it’s a hybrid schedule, a staggered option such as the opportunity to work four 10-hour days, or simply more flexibility regarding work/life balance.
- Feeling valued. There are many ways to make employees feel valued, from employee recognition programs to wellness initiatives to regular check-ins and feedback mechanisms. But one of the most powerful ways to engage and motivate employees is through career development and learning.
The Value of Learning
Providing opportunities for employees to learn new skills or enhance existing ones empowers them, giving them confidence in their abilities. This empowerment can lead to increased motivation as employees feel more competent and capable in their roles.
Not enough companies are heeding the call to upskill their employees. In the third ManpowerGroup Global Talent Barometer, only 47% of workers reported undergoing any training in the previous six months. Even more alarming, approximately 60% of first-time managers have never received management training.
There are many ways to create a culture of learning, from simple moves to fully crafted programs.
10 Ways to Create a Culture of Learning
- Promote and celebrate employee investment in education and learning. From the CEO on down, leaders need to model learning behavior.
- Create clear career pathways to in-demand/emerging jobs and make learning part of your employee’s specific career path.
- Monitor the learner’s progress with check-ins or milestones to enhance motivation.
- Encourage independent thinking. The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) calls this “teaching how, not what.”
- Treat failure as an expected consequence of learning. It’s safe to take risks and to make mistakes rather than always take the “expected” route.
- Make learning as easy and accessible as possible. Meet the learner where he or she lives. That means enabling on-demand learning when possible.
- Consider a career coach. New employees benefit from input regarding what they should be learning and how it can benefit them.
- Build learning into routine performance reviews—make it an expected part of career development.
- Best-practice is to include your entire workforce – permanent and contingent.
- Celebrate achievements. This can be as simple as awarding badges and/or public recognition. Some companies go a step further with financial rewards or gift cards.
Why Is This Important?
Multiple studies point to the beneficial effects of a strong learning culture, including 30-50% better retention. We’re talking a well-crafted program that’s tied to employee development — not just one-time training on a new application or procedure.
Companies with a strong learning program can:
- React quickly to disruptions, adapting to meet the demands of a changing industry. They have their own pipeline of talent ready for the next challenge.
- Harness ideas for new products, services and processes — leading the change in their prospective industries.
- Boost morale. Learning new skills bolsters confidence and competence, making employees feel valued and leading to better individual and team performance.
- Attract new talent. In this candidate-driven job market, skilled in-demand candidates have choice. The ability to visualize a clear career path adds value to your organization.
- Retain current employees. It costs about 25% more to hire vs. retain; the improved employee morale and motivation driven by education can drive down turnover and improve your employee retention rate.
Going Deeper
As for the “how,” organizations have countless avenues to begin building an upskilling program. A wide range of online learning options are available through universities, professional associations and industry-specific training providers. These can be paired with internal resources such as in-person workshops, subject matter expert–led sessions and live or recorded webinars. Many organizations also incorporate skills assessments, certifications, microlearning modules and on-the-job practice to reinforce new capabilities. By blending these formats, companies can create a flexible learning ecosystem that meets employees where they are and supports continuous growth.
Manpower associates have access to several no-cost education options to equip them with in-demand skills our clients need most. One of them is the Manpower Acceleration program, a robust training and development program that provides training, education, career coaching and development so Manpower associates find a meaningful career pathway. For example, we have a warehouse/production team lead certification program that essentially welcomes talent in entry level roles to take courses on leadership, management and more, preparing them to take the next step in their career. It requires a four-to-six-week commitment, at no cost to the active Manpower associate.
Offering training such as this is an outstanding way to provide meaning and added value to your staff in a way that boosts your retention rates.
Remember…
The workforce is changing. Getting and keeping talent isn’t easy, but it’s essential — and by creating a culture of learning, all parties will reap the benefits.
For more about our skilling programs, visit our MyPath page.
If you’re a manufacturer looking to future-proof your workers with in-demand skills, read 8 Steps to Building Your Own Skilled Technical Workforce.