Lab Matters Fall 2018 | Page 7

INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH Figure 3: Perceived Opportunities for Advancement vs. Probability of Leaving the PHL Workforce −4 −3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3 4 5 Not good <−−−−−−−−−−Perception of PHL career advancement opp−−−−−−−−−−−−−>Good The report confirms the conventional wisdom that the overall compensation package and flexibility provided in the public sector workplace are incentives for Millennial and Generation X staff who intend to stay in the PHL workforce. On the other hand, the report showed that Millennials were generally less likely to report being satisfied with their jobs than their older counterparts. This was especially concerning as the report showed a strong association between intent to leave the PHL workforce within five years and levels of dissatisfaction. Therefore, the PHL community needs to experiment with other incentives to appeal to this generation for both recruitment and retention. While we can continue to voice the need for better salaries, we can also offer other creative incentives that matter in the work environment and culture. PublicHealthLabs @APHL Thinking Creatively Creative solutions for recruitment and retention might include more opportunities for training, tuition reimbursement or student loan deferral, flex schedules or job sharing with benefits. The report shows that Millennials, more than other generations, valued continuing education and, for this group especially, those who valued continuing education and training were less likely to report job satisfaction—perhaps indicating that they do not find these opportunities currently in the public health laboratory (See Figure 2). Surprisingly, while perceptions of opportunities for growth were highly associated with intention to stay for Generation X, this was not the case for Millennials. For this group, opportunities for growth did not seem to matter in their decisions to leave (See Figure 3). APHL.org The Knowledge Management Committee formed a new workgroup at their annual in-person meeting in September 2018 to address this complex dynamic for attracting and engaging Millennials. The workgroup will collect and evaluate strategies for recruitment and retention, gathering not only practices that worked well but also those that were not successful. Part of this effort will be hearing lessons learned from laboratory leaders. Another will be listening to the Millennials and better understanding their work environment needs. We invite APHL members to share your creativity, experience and innovation to find practical solutions that PHLs can implement to attract, support and sustain this younger generation. n To learn more about this workgroup or get involved, contact [email protected]. Fall 2018 LAB MATTERS 5