Turnover at work: Insights, causes, and how to prevent it

A thriving team is like a well-kept garden: Ideas bloom, relationships take root, and growth feels natural. But any organization that’s ever dealt with increased employee turnover rates knows how quickly the bright spots thin out when people quit, leaving gaps where talent used to blossom.

By digging into the real reasons for employee turnover, you can protect what you’ve built and help your workplace flourish year after year. 

What’s employee turnover?

Employee turnover happens when a worker leaves and the company begins the process of finding a replacement. At times, no replacement is hired, leading to employee attrition and a smaller overall workforce.

Staff turnover comes in two forms: voluntary and involuntary. Voluntary turnover happens when a worker chooses to leave. With involuntary turnover, it’s the organization that decides to end the employment.

9 common causes of employee attrition or turnover

Involuntary staff turnover often stems from poor performance or layoffs after downsizing. But there are many potential reasons for voluntary employee turnover and attrition. Here are nine of the most common. 

1. Being overworked

Feeling overworked leads to burnout, which often pushes employees to their breaking point. Overtired workers are more likely to seek out less demanding opportunities to create a better work-life balance.

2. Inconsistent management styles

It’s normal for managers to have slightly different leadership styles. But when those styles conflict, teams tend to get confused. Employees may get mixed messages about their tasks or about the company’s goals, leading to frustration that pushes them out the door.

3. Lack of recognition

Recognition fuels employee engagement and morale. When managers fail to acknowledge great work, employees lose their sense of accomplishment and purpose. And once morale disappears, loyalty is quick to follow. 

4. Few opportunities for professional development

Professional growth fuels a thriving workforce. On the flip side, stagnation breeds frustration. When companies don’t offer career development opportunities like training or education, employees feel stuck, and many will jump at the opportunity to grow elsewhere.

5. Little to no career advancement

Staying in the same role with the same tasks for too long can start to feel dull. Most employees crave challenge, responsibility, and growth. When they feel bored or don’t see a path forward, they’re likely to start looking for a new role.

6. Low salaries and raises

Low pay is one of the quickest ways to sink morale. Employees who feel underpaid or haven’t had a raise in a while will have a hard time staying motivated. Many will leave for a role that offers better compensation and a brighter financial future.

7. Inadequate benefits

Offering baseline benefits isn’t enough anymore. Employees expect perks that support their well-being, like wellness programs, therapy access, on-site childcare, or flexible schedules. Without those benefits, workers may feel the company doesn’t value their needs, a perception that can drive a high employee turnover rate.

8. Toxic company culture

A toxic work culture is a fast track to high turnover. Bullying, poor leadership, and micromanagement drain employee morale and make daily work unbearable. In these environments, employees don’t just disengage; they start actively looking for an exit.

9. Incompatibility with management

Friction between employees and management is a major cause of high turnover rates. When workers feel confused by their manager’s requests or too intimidated to ask questions, trust breaks down.

How to turn around staff turnover and boost retention

High turnover drains resources, erodes morale, and disrupts productivity. Replacing employees is costly and time-consuming. And each time someone leaves, there’s a risk that others will feel inspired to do the same.

But now that you know the common causes of turnover, you can put strategies in place to address them. Here’s how.

Establish clear evaluation guidelines 

Regular performance reviews give employees a voice and a clear growth path, both of which can boost job satisfaction. Managers can address roadblocks, set achievable goals, and help employees take pride in their work. When people feel valued, they’re more motivated to stay put.

Set reasonable organizational goals

Overly ambitious goals and accelerated schedules often lead straight to burnout. Aim for realistic business and team goals with fair, achievable timelines so employees can work toward them without feeling overwhelmed.

Create a great work environment

Prioritize well-being, competitive pay, and supportive leadership. Avoid micromanagement, and give employees autonomy to solve problems their way. Flexible hours or remote options are also great ways to further improve work-life balance.

Hire the right people

Recruiting the right talent is about more than finding an employee with the ideal skill set. Consider how well a new hire will fit into the team. People who don’t vibe with an organization’s culture or believe in its mission are also less motivated to stay.

Monitor feedback

Use tools like employee surveys and regular one-on-one check-ins to uncover workplace concerns before they start causing turnover. With Workleap Officevibe, you can run automated pulse surveys, schedule custom engagement surveys, and even structure 1:1s with templates and reminders, helping you spot issues early enough to take action.

Build a great onboarding experience

Onboarding shapes a new hire’s first impression, and that impression lasts. Go beyond paperwork by introducing them to the team, clarifying their responsibilities, and walking them through key processes. Give them the tools, resources, and contacts they need from day one.

Encourage professional development

Offer training programs, mentorship opportunities, and stipends for courses or certifications. Show employees you’re invested in their long-term success by creating clear development paths. As skills grow, so do engagement, loyalty, and the overall strength of your team.

Focus on communication

Clear, open communication keeps teams connected and aligned. Train your leaders to actively listen, share timely feedback, and connect day-to-day tasks to the bigger picture. When communication flows freely, trust and collaboration follow, making it easier to hold onto great talent.

Build a more resilient team with Workleap

High employee turnover is a symptom of deeper organizational problems. It often points to preventable issues like misaligned management practices, weak communication, or limited growth opportunities that, if left unaddressed, keep pushing employees out the door.

Workleap Officevibe helps you catch and address those issues before they cost you top talent. With automated pulse surveys, custom engagement surveys, and structured one-on-one tools, you’ll have real-time insight into team morale and the factors that impact retention. Act on that feedback, and you can create a culture where employees feel valued, supported, and ready to stay.

Get started with Workleap Officevibe for free to transform high turnover into long-term commitment.

FAQs

How can I calculate my employee turnover rate?

It’s hard to predict exactly how many people might leave in a given period, but you can measure past turnover to spot trends. Divide the number of employees who’ve left during a set time frame by your current headcount, then multiply by 100 to get a percentage. For example, if three out of 30 employees resign in a year, your annual turnover rate is 10%. 

What KPIs should I track to monitor employee turnover rates?

Start with the basics: Track how many people are leaving and joining your company. To dig into why turnover is happening, look at metrics like employee engagement and satisfaction scores. Both can highlight risks before they lead to resignations.

How long should employees stay in a role?

There’s no universal “right” tenure, but patterns often emerge. Many employees start looking for new opportunities after two to three years if they don’t see a clear path for growth. Tracking tenure alongside engagement and performance data can help you spot when someone might be ready for a new challenge and act before they start looking elsewhere.