You Don’t Run Santa’s Workshop – Make the Holidays Less Stressful for Your Employees
While the elves in Santa’s workshop may feel a tinge of stress at holiday time, they work in a magical place where they and their boss are under no real pressure from shareholders, investors or customers. Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of real employees do not enjoy such a benevolent situation.
Stress-Free Means Better Morale
Instead, the end-of-year holiday season creates a multitude of stressful situations and it is the responsibility of good managers to deal with this issue. In fact, making the holidays less stressful for everyone involved cannot only boost employee morale but also improve customer service and thus increase the bottom line. Here are just a few suggestions for helping your employees get through this stressful time of year while also doing a great service to your company.
Use the Power of Overtime – Not everyone celebrates the same holidays and many employees are quite excited at the prospect of earning holiday pay. It is a simple matter to check with employees and then schedule ones who actually want to work. It’s a win-win situation for everyone involved.
Schedule Most Holiday Events during Normal Business Hours – This is not to say that a holiday party should be held during normal business hours but small events like Secret Santa exchanges and the like should not bring employees back after a long day of work. After all, there is a lot to do at holiday time and creating a meaningless “event” to promote employee morale can be viewed as just another thing to do and even have the opposite effect of that desired.
Provide Yearly Bonuses Ahead of the Holiday – Paying your annual bonuses ahead of the holidays should not be a major cash flow problem with all the extra sales of the season. It will, however, provide a much needed boost to employee morale in the cash-strapped season. In addition, there is something in it for you as paying the bonus in the current year rather than the next will decrease your net earnings and any taxes due on them.
Provide Some Flexibility in Scheduling – While it does take some extra effort on your part, allowing employees some flexibility in their schedules during the holiday season can be a real boost to morale. This will allow them to complete all of the many errands that the holidays produce. Also, you are doubly rewarded since there are people in your organization who will jump at the chance to earn some extra money by taking the extra shifts.
Have a Company Party or Provide Food – The simplest of measures can often produce the greatest benefits. A company party after hours or just a simple buffet during normal hours in the workplace is a relatively affordable way to say, “Thank You” to your employees, reduce stress and thus build morale. Also, a small token of appreciation for every employee will do wonders. Do not discount the power of these simple but effective measures.
Consider Floating Holidays – The United States has always been a multicultural place but the 21st century has seen an explosion of cultural holidays throughout the year. If possible, have your HR department determine whether allowing employees to choose their paid holidays is superior to having to be satisfied with just the standard ones. You might be surprised how your employees embrace the idea.
A Final Thought
The holidays are stressful enough with personal items without adding to the problem with business ones. Instead, a prudent business person should take the opportunities that the holidays present to provide some employees with extra time off, others with a little extra money and all of them with the holiday spirit.
