Senior Care

Top 7 Reasons Senior Living Communities Have High Staff Turnover

February 8, 2024
Freddie Peyerl
Post by
Freddie Peyerl

A stable workforce is crucial for senior living communities, as it ensures consistent, high-quality care for residents. However, staff turnover rates in senior care have been alarmingly high, leading to disruptions in services and negatively affecting both employees and residents. In this blog, we explore the top 7 reasons for high staff turnover in senior living communities and introduce Quiltt, an engagement and communication platform that can help address these issues and improve staff retention.

Top 7 Reason for High Staff Turnover in Senior Living Communities

  1. Lack of recognition and appreciation

    One of the main reasons employees leave their jobs is a lack of recognition and appreciation. When employees feel undervalued, they become demotivated and may seek new opportunities where their contributions are acknowledged.

staff appreciation stat


  1. How Quiltt can help: Implement employee recognition programs and celebrate accomplishments
    Quiltt can help senior living communities create a culture of recognition by implementing employee recognition programs that celebrate individual and team accomplishments. With Quiltt's platform, management can easily send appreciation messages, share success stories, and recognize employees for their hard work and dedication, fostering a more positive work environment.

  2.  Low wages

    Low wages can greatly affect staff motivation and retention in senior living communities. When employees are not paid a competitive wage, they are more likely to look for higher-paying opportunities elsewhere, leading to a high turnover rate.

senior living employee retention


  1. How Quiltt can help: Increase productivity of staff allowing for a smaller team to be more efficient and justify higher pay
    Quiltt can help improve staff productivity by streamlining communication and task management. With a more efficient team, senior living communities may be able to operate with a smaller workforce, thereby justifying higher wages for the remaining staff members. Additionally, improved productivity can lead to cost savings, which can be reinvested into employee compensation.


  2.  Lack of professional growth opportunities  

    In the ever-evolving field of senior care, continuous learning is essential for employees to stay up-to-date with best practices and improve their skills. Without opportunities for professional growth, employees may feel stagnant in their roles and seek new challenges elsewhere.

senior living staff turnover


  1. How Quiltt can help: Provide access to training resources and career development programs
    Quiltt's platform allows senior living communities to easily share training resources and information on career development programs with their employees. By providing access to educational materials and opportunities for advancement, staff members are more likely to feel engaged, motivated, and committed to their workplace.


  2. Poor management and leadership

    Effective management and leadership play a crucial role in employee satisfaction. When employees feel unsupported or undervalued by their supervisors, they may become disengaged and look for new opportunities.

senior living staff appreciation stat


  1. How Quiltt can help: Improve communication between management and staff
    Quiltt's platform facilitates better communication between management and staff, fostering a more open and collaborative work environment. With Quiltt, managers can easily share updates, address concerns, and gather feedback from employees. Improved communication helps build trust and strengthens relationships between staff members and their supervisors, ultimately leading to higher job satisfaction and employee retention.


  2.  High levels of stress and burnout

    Stress and burnout are common issues in senior care work, often resulting from heavy workloads, emotional strain, and a lack of support. Over time, these factors can take a significant toll on employees' mental health, causing them to seek employment in less demanding environments.

  1. How Quiltt can help: Help reduce tedious tasks which can improve work-life balance
    Quiltt's platform can assist in streamlining various administrative tasks, allowing employees to focus on their primary responsibilities and reducing the risk of burnout. By automating and simplifying processes, Quiltt helps create a more manageable workload for staff, promoting a healthier work-life balance and improved job satisfaction.


  2.  Insufficient staffing levels

    Insufficient staffing levels can lead to increased workloads, longer hours, and elevated stress levels for employees. This can result in decreased job satisfaction and higher staff turnover rates.

assisted living staff turnover rate stat
  1. How Quiltt can help: Enhance staff scheduling and resource allocation
    Quiltt's platform offers tools that can help senior living communities optimize staff scheduling and resource allocation. By ensuring adequate staffing levels and a fair distribution of tasks, Quiltt helps alleviate the burden on employees and contributes to a more positive work environment, ultimately increasing staff retention.


  2. Inadequate training and onboarding

    Proper training and onboarding are essential for employees in senior care, as they ensure that staff members are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to provide high-quality care to residents. Inadequate training can lead to poor job performance, low morale, and increased staff turnover.

employee engagement stat
  1. How Quiltt can help: Streamline the onboarding process and provide access to training resources
    Quiltt can help senior living communities streamline their onboarding process by offering a centralized platform for sharing essential information, policies, and training materials with new hires. This ensures that employees have easy access to the resources they need to succeed in their roles. Additionally, Quiltt enables communities to continuously provide updated training materials and learning opportunities to their staff, promoting ongoing professional development and improved job satisfaction.

Addressing the factors contributing to high staff turnover in senior living communities is essential for ensuring a stable, satisfied workforce that can provide the best possible care to residents. Quiltt's senior living engagement and communication platform offers a range of tools and features that can help senior living communities tackle these issues, improve staff retention, and create a more positive work environment for employees. By investing in solutions like Quiltt, senior living communities can not only retain their valuable staff but also enhance the overall quality of care they provide.