In 2023, Tribal employers are continuing to adapt to a rapidly changing work environment and seizing opportunities to improve recruitment and retention strategies—moves which will strengthen their organizations and help them to keep up with increasing employee expectations.
As expert Tribal advisors with four decades serving Tribes and Tribal entities, REDW’s trusted Human Resources Consulting team is here to help employers in Indian Country create a culture of employee engagement and success.
Listen to our podcast on this subject, Building a Resilient Workforce with HR Consulting
What HR Challenges Are Tribal Employers Facing in 2023?
#1 – Recruiting
Recruiting will remain this year’s biggest challenge for Tribal employers as job openings continue to outpace hiring. People-competition is real and will become more aggressive in 2023.
To combat the doomsday employee market predictions, employers must reimagine how to improve team member engagement.
Why? Bottom line—because the employee pool is getting smaller, in part, due to the following reasons:
- Workers today do not seem to have prioritized the skills desired by employers.
- Many potential employees have chosen to become self-employed or freelance gig workers.
- Some potential employees fear increased person-to-person contact in the workplace and the possibility of bringing emergent infectious illnesses into their home and putting their families at risk.
- Daycare is less affordable and difficult to find.
- Desirable employees are looking for hybrid or fully remote employment opportunities which may not be offered or advertised by their potential employers.
- In Tribal finance and healthcare sectors, it is becoming more difficult to find qualified applicants.
Areas of Consideration to Improve Recruiting:
Practical and creative strategies for sourcing candidates are more important than ever for Tribal organizations to improve recruiting efforts. Branding and organizational culture are crucial factors that applicants pay close attention to as they are screening job offers. Highlighting your organization’s unique and competitive benefits is a useful recruiting tactic that can be attractive to future team members. Here are some areas to consider:
- Talented, skilled team members recognize the value of workplace cultures that support mentoring, feedback, career paths, and embracing current technology.
- Top candidates also highly value benefits for flexible work schedules, retirement plans, fitness, and work/life balance.
- During the application process, talent acquisition and recruiting professionals must be on top of their game to provide applicants with quick feedback and timely responses.
In a strategic talent acquisition plan, Tribal employers will also want to consider creative solutions such as pursuing non-traditional candidates, or “quiet hiring” to develop talent within the organization.
Quiet hiring (also called ‘upskilling employees’) occurs when an organization promotes internal mobility and acquires new skills without acquiring new full-time employees, usually through giving current team members more responsibilities or allowing them to expand their knowledge by taking on different internal projects outside of their department or purview.
#2 – Retention
In 2023, team members are seeking purpose, positive culture, opportunities for advancement, and a feeling of belonging. Creating a high-performance culture and a thriving Tribal organization relies heavily on structured retention strategies and gaining insight into turnover trends. To stop the “quiet quit” (or a “revolving door”), Tribal employers must recognize that team members are leaving positions for a number of reasons, not just better pay.
To remain competitive, employers should focus on creating opportunities for employee development and internal advancement and mobility for all team members, but particularly for those that are high-performing. Emphasis is growing for necessary development of soft skills, including listening, supportive behaviors, building collaboration, effective communication, self-motivation, problem-solving, innovation, and creativity.
Forward-thinking employers must also consider building employee relationships through engagement strategies, continuous feedback, and upskilling.
Benefits & Perks for Tribal Employers
As the market shifts and inflation continues to be a major economic factor, it is important to consider benefits and perks (or “total rewards”) to attract and retain the best employees and ensure the long-term success and sustainability of your Tribal organization. Benefits and perks are particularly important for team members in lower-paying jobs. Work-life balance is no longer considered a perk—it is an expectation. Team members are expecting flexible work arrangements that truly make work, work. So, Tribal employers should evaluate their total rewards programs periodically.
A common issue confronting many Tribes is the occurrence of a childcare desert which creates serious hardships for team members to find reliable childcare.
Employees today strongly value assistance with childcare, mental health care, on-site and virtual health services, increased paid time off, emergency savings funds, home ownership assistance, performance-based bonus opportunities, and travel benefits for alternative medical procedures.
Offering remote or hybrid work, flexible work arrangements, and additional health and wellness benefits can make significant, positive impact in helping your team members balance their lives and, in the long-run, improve overall organization retention.
#3 – Compensation
Given the exceptionally competitive labor market and the usual budget constraints, Tribal employers need to base compensation and benefits programs on relevant and reliable data. Compensation must be aligned with evolving organizational and social objectives, and include immediate rewards for expanding responsibilities, fair pay, and employee engagement. Tribal businesses and enterprises must also look beyond addressing compensation in a “spot market” approach and instead consider how a more comprehensive compensation strategy can help them effectively manage shifts in today’s work environment.
Treating compensation with a spot market approach happens when employers look at key competitors to determine average compensation for a specific job position—updating the position description, preparing the job posting, assessing the market, and then pricing the job.
However, to become an employer of choice, Tribal organizations must approach compensation in a more holistic way, making sure compensation is externally competitive, internally equitable, and administered transparently.
Unintended Consequences of Pay Compression
Pay compression is an unintended, internally impactful consequence for employers who increase team member salaries to compete for employees. Pay compression occurs when the pay of one or more employees is close to the pay of more experienced or longer-tenured team member in the same position, or when employees in entry-level type jobs are paid almost as much as colleagues in higher-level jobs, including supervisory or managerial positions. When competing for candidates or promoting within the organization, Tribal employers need to consider an adjustment to all related salary scales to avoid pay compression and ensure continued internal equity.
Learning from Compensation Studies
Learning from a compensation study can reveal whether your organization is competitive and offering an appealing base wage and ultimately minimize turnover and enhance team member engagement.
Since 2011, REDW has compiled a comprehensive annual survey of employee compensation data that Tribal Governments and Tribal Gaming organizations need to make smart, strategic decisions for strengthening their workforces and ensuring team members are paid competitively in the market. Each year data is collected from mid-February through August, and a full report (including historic trends) is made available in the Fall. These survey results allow Tribes to view their unique position in the employee market as compared to other similarly sized and located Tribes. Learn more about REDW’s 2023 Tribal Compensation Survey.
We’re Here to Make This Easier
Employee expectations are rising and will continue to challenge Tribal organizations to provide tailored experiences that empower team members to perform their best work. Overall, team members want greater transparency and fairness regarding compensation and career progression. REDW’s trusted HR consultants are experts in recruitment, benefits, and compensation, and provide complete HR support for Tribal human resources departments. We’re ready to partner with you to improve team member engagement and success at your organization.
Contact Cristin Heyns-Bousliman, Esq., Principal Human Resources Consulting.
