How Costly Is Turnover? Evidence from Retail

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Kuhn, Peter; Yu, Lizi
• 署名单位: University of California System; University of California Santa Barbara; National Bureau of Economic Research; IZA Institute Labor Economics; University of Queensland
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF LABOR ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0734-306X
• DOI: 10.1086/710359
• 发表日期: 2021
• 页码: 461-496
• 关键词: employee turnover; team incentives; PRODUCTIVITY; CONSEQUENCES; unemployment; performance; differentials; environment; company; notice

摘要

We estimate turnover costs in small retail sales teams using daily sales data and an advance notice requirement to address endogeneity concerns. In addition to short-staffing and onboarding costs, we identify two less familiar sources of turnover costs: incumbent workers' recruitment activities and reductions in team morale after a departure is announced. Our estimates of total turnover costs are relatively modest, however: 10% higher turnover is about as costly as a 0.6% wage increase. We attribute these low costs to a set of complementary personnel policies that ensure that only 25% of departures result in a short-staffing spell.