The September 2024 HR Roundup covers key challenges in the workforce, including a growing soft skills shortage, gender pay disputes, and rising cases of new hires “ghosting” employers. These issues, particularly in healthcare, highlight the need for stronger communication, fair pay practices, and improved onboarding processes. This roundup offers insights and recommendations for employers facing these evolving HR challenges.
Soft skills crisis
A recent study conducted by outdoor education provider Inspiring Learning highlights a growing “soft skills crisis” in the UK workforce, especially among Gen Z employees. Key abilities like communication, resilience, and problem-solving are lacking, with 37% of employers citing poor communication skills within their Gen Z workforce. The study also shows that teamwork and communication are more valued than technical skills, with 55% of employers valuing communication skills, more than double of those that value computer skills at 26%.
The lack of soft skills is attributed to insufficient early education and training, with 43% of respondents to the study survey indicating they were not taught soft skills during their childhood.
So, what are the implications of this for healthcare employers?
- Communication Gaps: Poor communication skills can result in misunderstandings with patients or their carers, potentially compromising patient safety if issues aren’t addressed before treatment. Additionally in healthcare, strong teamwork is essential, and ineffective communication between colleagues can slow down processes, impacting both patient outcomes and overall efficiency.
- Problem-Solving Under Pressure: A lack of resilience and problem-solving abilities may hinder a healthcare worker’s capacity to make quick decisions in stressful healthcare environments, increasing pressure on experienced staff and risking burnout.
- Overall Patient Care and Satisfaction: Strong communication is essential for patient trust and adherence to treatment plans. Poor skills in this area may affect patient engagement and overall satisfaction, potentially harming healthcare providers’ reputations.
To address the lack of soft skills in healthcare settings, employers should offer employees opportunities for necessary training or mentoring to develop these skills to an acceptable level. Providing courses on communication, teamwork, and time management, for example, can equip staff with the tools needed to enhance these skills and prevent potential issues that may arise from their absence.
Gender pay equality and sex discrimination
Over 60,000 Asda workers, primarily female retail staff, are involved in a landmark equal pay dispute. They argue that they earn up to £3.74 less per hour than their male counterparts in Asda warehouses, despite both roles being of equal value to the company. The GMB union is leading the case, which is expected to last three months and is the largest of its kind in the private sector. Asda maintains that the pay difference reflects distinct skill sets between retail and warehouse jobs, not gender bias.
Healthcare companies must avoid equal pay disputes like Asda’s to maintain trust, employee retention, and regulatory compliance. Pay disparities can lead to service disruption, legal costs, and reputational damage. Regular pay audits, clear job evaluations based on objective criteria, and transparent communication about pay structures are crucial for mitigating risks. Ensuring fair career progression and fostering an inclusive culture, while adhering to equal pay legislation, further protects against legal challenges. These steps improve staff morale and the quality of care, ensuring employees feel fairly compensated for their roles.
“Ghosting” by new recruits on the rise
Research from the CIPD published in September found that over 27% of UK employers experienced new hires not showing up for their first day of work in the past year, and 41% of employers also experiencing employees resigning with their first 12 weeks of work. This issue is exacerbated by the current recruitment issues faced by businesses due to increasing competition for well-qualified candidates.
Whilst new recruits “ghosting” their new employers is a frustrating issue for organisations, especially those within the healthcare sector, it is important to also understand the reasonings that could be behind this course of action, and for these to be addressed in order to avoid similar situations:
- Poor onboarding processes: the onboarding process is the most major step in new workers deciding whether or not the job and workplace is right for them. If the onboarding process by the company is poor, such as lack of mentorship, training and community, then an employee is more likely to believe they have made the wrong decision and thus leave or look for new opportunities. This is why it is vital that employers ensure that their onboarding process is effective and properly implemented during any new starter’s probationary period.
- Managing expectations during the recruitment period: sometimes new starters can misunderstand responsibilities or circumstances surrounding their new role if this is not clearly communicated during the recruitment process. For example, if shift pattern expectations are not clearly discussed during recruitment and it is different from what the recruit was expecting, this could lead to dissatisfaction and disillusionment from them towards the company. Therefore, it is very important that these kind of agreements and expectations are made abundantly clear before they accept a job offer from the organisation.
- Cultural fits: sometimes the reason that a new employee does not remain at a company for very long is due to their incompatibility with the company culture. Someone may be incredibly qualified in their particular role and responsibilities, but if they disagree with the culture of the organisation, it can often lead to dissatisfaction and therefore the desire to leave to a different organisation that better suits their culture needs. For example, a new employee may have specific requirements for a strong DEI-led organisational culture, and if this is lacking, it may cause them to look towards other organisations that do offer this kind of company culture. As a result, it is very important to live and breathe your organisation’s culture externally and during the recruitment and onboarding processes so that potential candidates can have a better understanding of the kind of culture they are becoming a part of before accepting a role within it.
