How to Reduce Employee Turnover
By TNTSEO United
Last updated: September 2026
To reduce employee turnover in warehouse and production roles, start with the match between the job you offer and the job people experience. Review hiring expectations, early support, schedule predictability, supervision, and local pay. Ask departing workers what broke down, then assign someone to address the recurring problems.
In July 2026, 2.2% of workers in transportation, warehousing, and utilities quit their jobs in a single month, compared with 1.9% across all nonfarm jobs and 1.4% in manufacturing (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, JOLTS, preliminary).
Those seasonally adjusted rates provide context for your own records. At FIS Recruitment, we phone screen and interview candidates before presenting them, and we check references.
How high is turnover in warehouse and production work?
In July 2026, 2.2% of workers in transportation, warehousing, and utilities quit their jobs in a single month, compared with 1.9% across all nonfarm jobs and 1.4% in manufacturing (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, JOLTS, preliminary). In the same BLS data, total separations in that industry ran at 3.8%, against 3.2% across all nonfarm jobs.
BLS JOLTS monthly rates, July 2026, seasonally adjusted and preliminary
| Measure | Transportation, warehousing, and utilities | Manufacturing | All nonfarm jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quits rate | 2.2% | 1.4% | 1.9% |
| Total separations rate | 3.8% | 2.3% | 3.2% |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), July 2026 preliminary data, quits rates and total separations rates.
A quit is a voluntary departure, excluding retirement and transfers to other locations under BLS definitions. Total separations also include layoffs, discharges, and other departures, including retirements. These are monthly rates, not annual turnover. The transportation, warehousing, and utilities figures cover the combined industry, not warehouses alone.
Why hourly warehouse and production workers leave
Investigate the gap between what workers expected and what the shift requires. Start with pay, schedule changes, physical demands, early support, supervision, and transportation. Treat these as possible causes to test against employee feedback, rather than assuming the same explanation applies to every departure on your floor.
- Pay: Ask whether nearby employers offer a more attractive package for comparable work.
- Schedules: Check whether start times, overtime expectations, or days off changed after hiring.
- Physical demands: Ask whether the description prepared people for standing, repetition, pace, and temperature.
- Early support: Find out whether anyone took responsibility for the new starter's questions.
- Supervision: Ask how instructions, corrections, and concerns were handled.
- Transportation: Check whether the commute worked at the actual shift times.
Record the worker's explanation separately from the supervisor's assessment. Look for repeated issues within the same role or shift before deciding which change to make.
Fix it at hiring: fit comes before speed
Give candidates a realistic view of the job before they accept it. Explain what they will do, where they will work, and what the shift demands. Use that conversation to check expectations and practical availability, while giving the candidate room to decide whether the position fits.
Show the pick station or production area, with an appropriate visitor safety briefing. Describe the pace, temperature, standing, and repetitive tasks accurately. Ask candidates to explain their understanding of the work. Replace a vague description such as "flexible hours" with the actual schedule and how changes are communicated.
Discuss arrival and departure times when checking commute fit. Keep questions focused on meeting the job's requirements. Use reference checks to explore relevant work experience rather than treating a positive reference as proof someone will stay.
At FIS Recruitment, we phone screen and interview every candidate before presenting them to you, and we conduct candidate reference checks. Bring the actual requirements to that conversation through our
industrial staffing service, so screening reflects the position you need to fill.
The first week decides a lot
Make the first week a planned introduction to the work, with a named person responsible for helping the new starter. Prepare access and equipment, explain safe working practices, and check understanding. End the week with a direct conversation about what matched the job description and what surprised them.
Assign someone to meet the employee and explain where to report, who gives instructions, and where to raise a concern. Arrange appropriate safety orientation and task training before assigning unfamiliar work. Prepare the workstation, access credentials, and necessary equipment so the welcome does not depend on whoever happens to be free.
At the end-of-week check-in, ask what remains unclear and which tasks need another demonstration. Record an owner and follow-up date for each issue. Keep the conversation specific enough that the employee can see what will happen next.
Schedules, supervisors and pay: the three levers you control
Review the terms and daily management of the job alongside your recruiting process. Post schedules in advance, prepare supervisors to support new starters, and compare compensation with similar local roles. Choose a concrete change based on employee feedback, then check whether the problem that prompted it becomes less frequent.
Schedules: Set a consistent posting routine and explain how changes will be handled. Ask whether workers can manage the advertised shift and whether actual hours match it. When a change is necessary, communicate directly and check practical consequences rather than relying on a notice someone might miss.
Supervisors: Give leads a clear approach to the first month: demonstrate tasks, invite questions, explain expectations, and follow up on concerns. Review departure patterns by supervisor alongside role, shift, and workload. Use the pattern to start a conversation, not to assign blame without context.
Pay: Compare the role, shift, duties, benefits, and location with nearby alternatives. The legal minimum alone is not a useful recruiting comparison. Keep local research specific, whether you need
warehouse and distribution staffing in the Lehigh Valley or
warehouse staffing in Hazleton.
How to measure turnover properly
Calculate employee turnover for a defined period by dividing separations by average employee headcount, then multiplying by one hundred. Include voluntary and involuntary departures, and track quits separately. Keep the period, employee population, and counting rules consistent so a change in the rate reflects a change you can investigate.
Employee turnover rate = (separations during the period / average employees during the same period) × 100.
Illustrative calculation, using invented inputs: a site with 6 separations during a month and an average of 120 employees has turnover of (6 / 120) × 100 = 5.0%. This is arithmetic for a hypothetical site, not a BLS figure or a recommended target.
Choose a repeatable way to average headcount, using regular payroll snapshots. BLS uses employment for the pay period containing the month's twelfth day, so its monthly rate is a contextual comparison rather than an identical calculation. Its
JOLTS definitions also count agency employees with their employer of record. Track host-site assignment endings separately from departures by your own employees.
For an early-turnover measure, use the first 90 days as a chosen review window. Count departures among starters who have had that full observation opportunity. Record early quits separately from employer-initiated endings, and compare successive hiring groups. Do not count a recent starter as having completed the window.
Alongside the rate, review recruiting time, training hours, coverage overtime, supervisor time, and output during training. Use your own records to understand the burden. Avoid attaching an assumed replacement cost to every departure.
Where temp-to-hire fits
Temp-to-hire gives an employer time to assess a worker on the actual job before making a permanent offer. Use that period to review the work, shift, and team fit with the employee. Set expectations at the start and discuss what both sides need to learn before a decision.
Our temporary workers stay on our payroll while you assess fit. Read how temp to hire works for the process. Provide the same clear instructions and early support you would want for any new starter. Treat the arrangement as an assessment opportunity, without assuming it will produce a particular retention result.
Frequently asked questions
Use turnover figures to identify questions about your operation, then connect those questions to employee feedback and consistent records. Match the type of departure and time period before comparing rates. The answers below separate the industry context, your own measurement choices, and what staffing support can help you assess.
What is a good employee turnover rate for a warehouse?
The BLS JOLTS rates are industry observations, not a recommended warehouse target. Use the transportation, warehousing, and utilities series as broad context, then examine your own trend for comparable periods. Compare quits with quits and total departures with total departures. Review seasonal staffing changes and planned assignment endings separately before deciding whether a movement in your rate signals a retention problem.
How do you calculate employee turnover rate?
Divide separations during a period by average employee headcount during that period, then multiply by one hundred. Count voluntary and involuntary departures, while keeping a separate record of quits. Use the same headcount method each time and document which employees are included. If agency workers also work on your floor, track their assignment endings separately so your employee turnover calculation has a consistent population.
Why is turnover so high in warehouse jobs?
Start by investigating job expectations, pay, schedules, supervision, and the experience of joining the team. Ask departing workers whether the actual duties and hours matched what they accepted, and whether they received enough support. Include commute difficulties in that discussion. The broad BLS industry rate cannot tell you why someone left your warehouse; use your own departure records to identify recurring issues.
What is the difference between quits and turnover?
Quits are a category of departures, while total turnover includes departures initiated by the employer and other endings. Under BLS definitions, quits are voluntary departures excluding retirements and transfers to other locations. Total separations also cover layoffs, discharges, and other separations. Keeping these categories separate helps you distinguish workers choosing to leave from planned staffing reductions or other changes in your workforce.
How can a staffing agency help reduce turnover?
A staffing agency can support a more informed hiring decision through screening, interviews, reference checks, and clear discussions about the assignment. Give the recruiter the real duties, shift, conditions, and expectations so candidates receive an accurate picture. Agree on how early concerns will reach the right person. Evaluate the resulting hires using your own records, without assuming recruitment support alone resolves every reason someone leaves.
Does temp-to-hire help with turnover?
Temp-to-hire lets you assess fit before deciding on permanent employment, but it does not establish a particular turnover outcome. Use the assignment to discuss performance, expectations, and whether the shift works for both sides. Provide training and feedback throughout the assessment. Make the permanent-hiring decision from what you observe, and measure subsequent retention rather than assuming that the staffing model itself solved the problem.
Talk to us about keeping your floor staffed
Bring us the role, shift, and recurring reasons people leave. We can start with the actual requirements and discuss screening and staffing options around them. Share what a successful first week should look like, so the hiring conversation connects with the experience you intend to provide on the floor.
Call 800.248.8687, email info@fisrecruitment.com, or open a requisition.
For workplace safety requirements or employment-law questions, consult OSHA or an employment attorney.
