How Effective are Employee Recognition Programs at Improving Morale?

By Ismail Khalid

When you are running your own business, there are a number of different things you need to worry about, some more important than others. But ultimately, the most important thing you need to do is ensure that you have a stable crew of employees whom you can trust to do the job well. Unfortunately, sometimes that is easier said than done, especially if your employees do not feel appreciated in their role at your company. There have been many different ways to try to address this, one of which being employee recognition programs. But what are they, and how do they work?

Determining how effective any one tool is at improving the morale of your employees is not necessarily an easy, simple, or even a linear process. Thus, it is important that you look into each tool you intend to use, and figure out how you intend to use it. When it comes to employee recognition programs, there is a lot that can be done here to make your employees feel truly recognized for what they put into your business.

How do you show employees that they are recognized?

One of the ways a lot of businesses are trying to better recognize their employees is gamification. Gamification is the phenomenon of attempting to make otherwise laborious tasks feel more like a video game, as it were. Essentially, your goal, if you go this route, is to create employee recognition programs that your employees should want to participate in. You should not use this to punish workers who do not manage to achieve high results, but instead use it to reward those who do.

Of course, employee recognition programs are only one part of the solution for low morale, and cannot be relied upon exclusively. There also needs to be a more human element behind that recognition, where you and others in management make it clear to their workers just how important their labor is to the company, as well as how much appreciation they have for what they’ve done. This can be done as a message for the whole team, but it is far more effective if you offer personalized and individualized feedback (both positive and negative) for employees.

Overall though, one of the best ways you can succeed at improving morale and recognition of employees is to give them better benefits (and not just as a reward). Better pay, better advancement, healthcare, vacation/sick leave, etc., all these do a great job of making employees happy and increasing productivity.

Can employee recognition be done wrong?

It may seem somewhat strange, but there is actually something to be said about the idea of doing employee recognition properly. For as good as it may be to give that recognition, you have to make sure that you do it the right way. For example, all too often, workplaces attempt to improve employee morale through highly banal things, such as a pizza party or what not. If employees do not have high morale while working for you, the idea of coming in on their off time to eat pizza with people they don’t enjoy being around is not going to be what solves your employee morale problem.

It can’t hurt to offer free food, but if that’s all you have to keep your employees happy, don’t expect to get great results. On social media, it’s even become a source of mockery; namely, that companies, instead of offering tangible benefits for their labor, such as pay raises or better working conditions, they simply provide some pizza.

Further, it is all too easy for attempts to show recognition of your employees’ accomplishments to fall flat. Not just in terms of how you show the appreciation, either. In this case, it would be an issue of providing outsized appreciation, or deeming certain tasks to not be worthy of appreciation. Employee appreciation cannot just be reserved for the biggest and most important people working for your company, as in the long run, these are not the people who are trying to find their way out of your company.

Employee recognition is an important thing for every employee, at every level of your business. No matter if they are the CEO of the company, or the janitorial staff. Every member provides an important role, and no one should be looked down on for that. Janitors who keep your business clean? Recognize them. Maintenance workers who keep your offices from falling apart? Recognize them. So-called “cogs in the machine” show that they are more than just making things run on time? Recognize them.

Even if people are not particularly standing out from the pack, it is important to encourage them, so that they can actually find it in them to exceed the expectations laid out for them. If employees do not think that you have their back, then they may simply not have the drive to go further than they already are, or worse, simply quit.

 

 

Injured on the Job? How to Know if You Qualify for Workers’ Compensation

Unfortunately, workplace injuries are a pretty common occurrence, and they can range in severity from a small cut to amputation or even death. Although workers’ compensation claims can be filed for almost any type of work injury, they’re usually only filed when the injury prevents the worker from actually working, and therefore, earning money.

Still, many workers don’t know when or if they should file for workers’ compensation to get their benefits. The requirements for receiving compensation after being injured on the job vary from state to state, but generally, these are the five requirements:

 

#1: You Must be Classified as an Employee

While this requirement sounds simple enough, it depends on how the definition of employee is determined at the state level. Most people would assume that it refers to a person who works for another person or company (so excluding business owners), but most definitions specify that a person is a salaried employee. This definition excludes contractors and other self-employed individuals who receive pay from a person or company.

Employee status can be defined as:

  • Being expected to work a set number of hours in a certain location
  • Your check has withholdings for income taxes/FICA
  • You receive a W2 to file income tax returns

 

#2: Your Injury Must be Work-Related

If you’re injured going to or leaving from work, or while away on break, you’re not eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits. Also, if your injury does occur during work, but is the result of your own misconduct, you may not be eligible for benefits in this scenario either. However, you will be eligible for benefits if working on the job has caused and of the following:

  • Exposure to harmful substances (including COVID-19)
  • Mental stress (in certain states)
  • Repetitive motion injuries, such as typing on a keyboard
  • Workplace noise that results in hearing loss

If your job requires you to operate a motor vehicle and you’re injured in a wreck, you may be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits.

 

#3: Your Employer Must Have Workers’ Compensation Insurance

Almost all businesses are required by law to have workers’ compensation insurance, so the first thing you must do is ensure that your employer is covered. If they aren’t covered and you’re injured and have to miss work, you’ll have to file a workers’ compensation lawsuit. In some cases, you may also have to file a lawsuit to get your maximum compensation because a lot of employees find that the payout is insufficient. For this reason, it’s essential to be careful about signing off on the compensation offered by your employer.

 

#4: You Must Meet the Deadline to File for Benefits

When it comes to receiving benefits for a work injury, there are two deadlines that must be met. The first one is to notify your employer of your work injury that’s causing you to miss work. The majority of states in the U.S. give you 30 days to notify your employer, but South Dakota and Wyoming residents have only three days, while New Hampshire residents have up to two years.

The other deadline is the amount of time you have to actually file your claim. Most of the time, you’re okay if you file for workers’ compensation within a year of your work injury. Again, it varies by state with many states allowing their residents up to two years to file, and Minnesota allowing its residents up to six years! No matter which state you live in, it’s always best to do it as soon as possible.

 

#5: You Must Attend All Appointments Associated With Your Injury

Sometimes a work injury may require the employee to frequently visit the doctor, or receive ongoing care such as physical therapy. In order to continue collecting all of your workers’ compensation benefits, you must attend all required doctor appointments and exams, and receive all required treatments. It’s okay if you have to reschedule an appointment here and there, but constant rescheduling is a red flag and your employer can legally withhold your benefits on the grounds of medical noncompliance.

Keep in mind also, that workers’ compensation benefits are only required to cover lost wages and medical costs. So if you’re not going to the doctor, there are no medical costs that need to be paid.

These requirements are similar for families of an employee that was killed on the job, or died as a result of injuries sustained from the job. This is known as a workers’ compensation death benefit, and it’s typically limited to the deceased worker’s spouse and or/dependants (e.g., children).