Survey: Workers less likely to leave LTC but want better life-work balance, tech

Despite increasing workloads and persistent stress, the percentage of long-term care workers planning to leave the industry has fallen by about 25% over the last three years. At the same time, the percentage of senior care workers saying improved work-life balance would help retain them has doubled. 

Those are key findings in the 5th Annual Senior Care Survey Report: Workforce 360, one of the largest annual long-term care workforce surveys of its kind. 

The survey of more than 3,500 long-term care nurses and top managers was conducted in April by ShiftKey and OnShift, a tech company that places independent licensed professionals and its scheduling software platform, respectively. 

In 2022, during the wind down of the pandemic, 57% of all senior care workers surveyed said they planned to leave long-term care. That figure was just 41% for full-time senior care employees and 46% for independent professionals this year. 

Meanwhile, in 2022, about one-fifth (22%) of senior care workers said improved work-life balance would help keep them with their current employers. By this spring, that number had ballooned to 44%. 

“This demonstrates a clear need for flexible work environments,” Regan Parker, ShiftKey’s chief legal and public affairs officer, said in a news release. 

In last year’s Workforce 360 findings, leadership respondents said that other than more money, additional employee perks (60%), better work-life balance (57%) and higher workforce levels (55%) would likely lead to better employee retention. In this year’s survey, only 21% said they had added employee perks, 37% had improved work-life balance and 26% had raised workforce levels. 

“Again, we keep coming back to the pressures on the workforce and see pay concerns among employees, along with burnout, in the lens as to whether workforce will stay in the industry,” Parker said. 

The top reasons employees were considering leaving the industry were stress and burnout (57%), low pay (54%), lack of management support (40%) and lack of recognition (37%). 

More than two-thirds of respondents in each job category reported moderately or significantly increased workloads over the last year. 

“In light of the high prevalence of burnout, leaders may want to consider adding mental health support to their benefits packages,” report authors wrote. “More than one-third of employees (39%) want more mental health and wellness support, but only 28% of leaders count it among their retention strategies.” 

Findings also reflected lagging implementation of other key employee retention tactics, they said.  

While higher pay was cited as the No. 1 goal for employees at 70%, only 59% of leaders named it “as a perk they offer.” Retention bonuses and incentives were next at 59% for employees (25% of leaders said they offered them), followed by additional employee perks like local discounts (51% desired by employees but only 21% of leaders offered them). 

Survey leaders said they were heartened by respondents’ desire for technology tools and adoption, although enthusiasm for artificial intelligence was tempered. 

Among employees, 56% were “excited and open” to the introduction of new technology, while 37% fell into “neutral, I’m willing to try it.” Slightly more than one-third (36%) said they thought they were “fully equipped” with the “necessary technology to provide quality care,” while exactly half said they were “somewhat equipped” but could use more. 

The most significant barriers cited to adopting new technology were cost (54% for leaders, 33% for employees), lack of training/knowledge (11% leaders, 28% employees) and resistance to change from staff or management (13% leaders, 24% employees). 

On the predicted impact that AI will have on senior care over the next year, “neutral/no impact” was the biggest vote getter among both leaders (30%) and employees (24%), with roughly a quarter of each group saying “don’t know.” 

On the more optimistic end, 25% of leaders and 22% of employees predicted “positive impact,” and 10% and 19%, respectively, said “very positive impact.” 

Long-term care employers may find encouragement in the levels of long-term care workers willing to recommend working in the sector to others.  

Among provider company employees, nearly two-thirds said they were “very likely” (34%) or “likely” (27%) to recommend it. Among independent professionals — those making their own schedules and typically working fewer shifts — the overall rate was even higher, with 26% saying “very likely” and 40% saying “likely.” 

Professionals in ShiftKey’s and OnShift’s marketing databases were sent the survey by email or app. More than 2,000 provider company employees, more than 1,500 independent nursing professionals and nearly 1,000 senior care leaders responded. Full results can be obtained at the OnShift or ShiftKey websites.  

Half of leader respondents, 68% of the independent professionals and 37% in the “employee” category identified themselves as skilled nursing professionals, the most popular category. Assisted living was second in each case, with the balance comprising memory care, life plan community and other workers.