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Employee turnover is one of the most difficult parts of operating any retail business. However, turnover is a particularly pressing issue for convenience stores, who face turnover rates of 130% for full-time employees, according to NACS.
These statistics are essential for understanding employee turnover:
- The average turnover for hourly retail positions excluding c-stores is far lower, at about 76%.
- According to 2022 NACS State of the Industry Compensation Report, it can cost an average of $3,242 to recruit, onboard, and train a new manager and $1,196 to hire a full-time worker.
- Wages for convenience store jobs have increased by 70% over the past decade, but nearly half of former c-store employees left for a higher-paying position, according to NACS and the Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council data.
- Even with higher pay and more robust benefits, convenience retailers remain saddled with high turnover rates, with 36% of new hires leaving within the first month.
- About one-third (35%) of hourly employees want to remain with an employer long-term.
Because employee turnover is so high and costs to train new employees keep rising, c-store owners want to know: what makes employees stay at a job?
- An employee’s motivation score rises by 27% when they have a manager that they look up to. This implies that excellent managers assist companies in maximizing the potential of their workforce.
- In 2022, Gallup identified the top six attributes employees sought in their next job. Of the 13,085 U.S. employees surveyed, 42% ranked an organization as “diverse and inclusive of all types of people” as vital to them when selecting a job.
- Employee recognition and appreciation create a workplace culture where people choose to remain in their positions longer. 84% of employees feel that recognition is an incentive to perform at work.
- Businesses with a “recognition-rich culture” perform significantly better than others in terms of performance, but only 17% of respondents said their organization fell into that category.
- Non-cash recognition can have a significant impact, accounting for up to 55% of employee engagement measures. This type of acknowledgment might include gestures such as a handwritten thank you for a job well done, public praise for an accomplishment, or an employee of the month designation.
