Contract Surety

Employee Retention Challenges?

08.19.2025

Churn. The coming and going of workers continues to impact construction more than other industries. High turnover clearly takes a toll on everyone and the bottom line too. Pros suggest creating a culture of loyalty by focusing on recognition, opportunities for growth, and safety. Compensation matters too, of course, but analytics indicate that it is not all that counts. 

Toward A Culture of Loyalty

To improve employee retention, it’s best to skip over the gimmicks. Retaining employees means building a business that people want to work for. That requires an ongoing commitment to giving employees plenty of good reasons to stay. Investing in loyalty is bound to pay off. The churn of employee turnover carries a steep price: “Research shows that hiring and training new construction staff can cost between 50 and 200% of each worker’s annual salary. High turnover also leads to knock-on effects, hindering your ability to build a reliable project pipeline.” 

Unfortunately, there is not a “fast button” for a presto culture of loyalty to the business. Employees can’t be ordered to be loyal, and throwing a barbeque and calling it a day is unlikely to have lasting results. The good news is this: survey results point to actionable, reasonable steps that when executed consistently, do in fact improve employee retention. At Well Built, CEO Chad Prinkey focuses on these three actions to create a culture of loyalty: recognizing the contributions of workers, offering plenty of opportunities for growth and development, and taking safety concerns very seriously. As Prinkey underscores, commitment to this “people first” approach ultimately benefits the business: “You want your employees to be proud of themselves and where they work. This elevated goal raises the standard from simply meeting your people’s needs to inspiring them to think and say great things about their jobs and your organization.” Some of Prinkey’s tips for sharpening the focus on recognition, growth, and safety at your business include:                      

  • Recognition goes a long way toward making your workers feel valued. Show appreciation for long-term employees — perhaps offering bonuses or promotion opportunities — to cement the notion that you place real value on loyalty. Also, rather than promoting the big project the company won or the top profit quarter you had, highlight the admirable actions of the people who contributed to those outcomes — reframing doing the right things every day as wins. This approach helps people…feel appreciated….
  • Giving your people opportunities to learn new skills and advance in their careers increases their likelihood of staying with your organization. It also ensures a pipeline of up-and-coming talent and prevents your most talented people from leaving.
  • Construction means long hours and consistent exposure to risks. Conduct regular safety training to help workers avoid on-the-job hazards and promote best practices. Allowing unsafe behaviors to go unchecked will prompt your best employees to head toward the exits.

Good To Know: Best Practices                      

Even the most heartfelt and generous employee recognition efforts are likely to backfire if best practices related to hiring, onboarding, compensating and retaining a diversity of workers are not solidly in place at the roots of the business. One specific technique that can be powerful during onboarding and beyond is assigning a mentor for new hires. In addition to giving a long-time employee a vested interest in the success of a new hire, you’ll be ensuring the new employee feels welcomed from day one. Pros share these additional pointers for building a business where people want to continue working: 

  • Compensation levels need to be competitive, and the same holds true for benefits packages. Today’s workers also value autonomy and flexibility, so construction companies that can offer these policies — and back them up in reality — will position themselves well to succeed….
  • Today, the only way construction companies will fill their ranks successfully is by recruiting people from a wide variety of backgrounds. To attract workers and keep them in their roles, however, these companies must ensure they feel safe and like they belong….Too many leaders and managers at construction companies regard diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts as a distraction or an inconvenience….If construction companies tolerate bias and discrimination, instituting an appreciation program will likely fall into the same pattern of [elevating] some workers over others due to inappropriate criteria….This would naturally lead to resentment and demoralization. 

Time To Team Up?

Effective teamwork is the secret sauce of most success stories—and Colonial Surety is here to help you succeed. Our Hometown Bond Program helps local builders get credit based underwriting bonds for up to $250k—no financial statements required.  

Growing from there, construction business owners can get in on more action by qualifying for The Partnership Account® for Contractors. Once qualified, you’ll use our power of attorney to issue your own bid bonds, in minutes. Order performance bonds with speed and ease too. Plus, you’ll bid and win more than ever as you leverage your:

  • Surety line of credit in writing;
  • Private digital dashboard;
  • daily snapshot of single and aggregate limits 
  • ability to update work on hand

Surety Bond programs for construction businesses of every size are right here: Bonding Programs at Colonial Surety Company

Founded in 1930, Colonial Surety Company is a leading direct seller and writer of surety bonds and insurance products across the USA. Colonial is rated “A Excellent” by A.M. Best Company and U.S. Treasury listed. Let’s connect today: Colonial Surety Company.