Long service awards are given to those employees within a business, an organisation or a group for a long length of time, but do they matter? Of course, they do.
When an employee reaches a significant landmark at a company, such as 10, 15, or 20 years of service, there is a reason why they have remained loyal. With the average worker leaving for pastures new roughly every five years in the UK, employees aren’t afraid to move on when they feel that other opportunities come their way. Those that stay do so because they feel they work for an employer that gives them no reason to leave.
Loyalty works both ways and when an employee displays such devotion, even during times when it may have been understandable for them to move on, that deserves to be recognised. A long service award is not only important to the recipient, but also to other employees at the company.
Why a Long Service Award Motivates Staff
When a colleague is recognised for their dedication, it motivates staff to want to be recognised similarly. It demonstrates that the employer values and looks after the most experienced and valuable members of the workforce, showing that their years of service are not overlooked.
Staff that have remained through thick and thin deserve to be recognised. Having spent time and money training employees to reach a point in their career where they can assume a senior role within the company, using their experience and company/industry knowledge to help others to grow, employers don’t want to lose them. Especially when that experienced employee could easily move to a direct competitor, taking those years of experience and knowledge along with them.
Seeing an experienced and long-standing member of staff leave, especially to a competitor, can be hugely demotivating to staff – as well as making them consider their own futures. Looking after experienced staff, such as recognising their loyalty with a long service award, has a positive effect throughout the company.
Pride
There is a sense of pride and accomplishment in receiving a glass award and those employees that have been loyal to your business deserve to experience that feeling with a long service award. Whether it is an award that they can place proudly on their desk in the office or on the mantelpiece at home, the pride that an employee takes in such recognition is immeasurable.
While the majority of awards are designed for those that have successfully achieved or exceeded targets, stalwarts of the business are those that have been there and done it. Their contributions over the years cannot be understated, providing the bedrock upon which the company stands. Don’t risk losing those key members of staff by overlooking this important fact.
More Valuable Than Ever
Here at Fen Regis Trophies, we feel that long service awards are more valuable than ever before. It is no longer common to stay in a job and company for life, with workers now more active in pursuing opportunities elsewhere.
If you are lucky enough to have loyal employees that have given their best years to the business, it is only right that they are duly recognised. If not, then your competitors will be more than happy to benefit from the years of knowledge and experience they can bring to their team.
