Five Scenarios to Show Your Employees That You Care

Employees have different styles of leadership. Some want to be seen as a stoic, strict, and aloof boss while others want to be the cool chief executive. The truth is, how your employees perceive you does not depend on how you want them to see you. Even if you act cool to them but do not pay them enough, you won’t win them over. Thinking that your employees can be bamboozled by your wit and coolness is akin to seeing them as unintelligent people who just happen to work for you.

It’s the last thing you want—for employees to see you as trying too hard to act cool when you’re really a ruthless and cruel boss. If you care for your employees and you want them to see that, you have to react appropriately to different scenarios you are thrust under. Here are at least five different scenarios where you can show how much you value your employees:

They or One of Their Family Members Gets Sick

Many companies only allow their employees to use their sick leaves when they are the ones who are sick. But what if their partners are sick and no one can take care of the kids? What if the kids themselves are sick? That’s the reason why some of them lie to their employers. If only employers are open-minded enough to understand that the household is complex. Allowing employees to use their sick leaves when one of their children is sick is a great way to show how much you value them.

When They Are Assigned to an Unsafe Worksite

If your employees feel unsafe in their workplace, they’ll never be as productive as they should. Make sure that you are providing them with the right gear and equipment. You need to know what kind of safety gear they need to wear for specific tasks assigned to them. They need safety gumboots when working on construction sites that deal with corrosive materials. The same boots will protect their legs when they work in bushes where they are at risk of insect and snake bites.

Invite Their Families to Company Events

Work is a lot easier when you have the support of your family. That’s how your employees feel, too. Why wouldn’t you want to meet their families or have a special day specifically to honor their support of your employees? During Christmas parties, invite your employees’ families so you can get to know them better. You have to let your employees’ families know that you support and appreciate their sacrifices as well. Even if you are paying your employees rightly, there’s nothing like leaving your toddlers to a babysitter to make you question your choices in life.

When They Need to Talk About Their Salaries

One of the ways that you can make your employees always feel welcome is to open your doors for salary negotiations. Make sure that they know you can talk about their compensation with them. Are they satisfied? Do they want more health coverage? Even small businesses have a wiggle room to accommodate some of their requests. Of course, you have to make clear that saying no is an option, but that it doesn’t mean you are not open to working out the kinks at a future date.

They Are All Burned Out

You will notice the signs when your employees are burned out. There’s an increase in absenteeism. They make mistakes more often. It’s all too common for a workforce to feel overwhelmed by the amount of work that they do. This is normal for any workplace. Why don’t you do something for your employees? You can plan a company outing or give them an extra day off for the week (you can work on shifts). There are plenty of options for employers who want to “treat” employees.

Speaking of treat, you can also treat your employees to a nice lunch or a fancy dinner on Friday night. Work out the schedule with them and make sure they’re not missing out on family time for going with you. This is a great time to get to know them better, too.

It is okay to be strict with company policies and project deadlines. That should be how anyone who wants to grow a business act. But that also doesn’t mean you cannot care about your employees’ well-being. This is, in fact, the glue that will hold your company together. A happy workforce is one of the main components of a business’ success.