PANAMA CITY — Bay County officials say they don't believe the area will crumble in the wake of a massive uptick in employee turnovers expected this year.

According to an April report from Gartner, a technology research consulting firm based in Connecticut, voluntary employee turnovers are predicted to jump 20% in 2022, meaning about 37.4 million people across the U.S. will quit their jobs to find positions with higher wages and better benefits.

Kim Bodine, executive director of CareerSource Gulf Coast, said she is confident this will not hinder Bay County as much as larger metropolitan areas. However, her group, which is one of 24 regional workforce boards across Florida, has noticed an uptick in people looking for new jobs who are already employed.

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She noted local employers are now more focused on providing incentives to secure and keep employees, including additional paid time off, health care, gym memberships and the ability to work remote.

"We find that a lot of individuals who are seeking employment do have a current job," Bodine said. "They're looking because pay has increased pretty quickly over the last two years, so people are really looking to see if they're getting the best pay and the best deal that they can get with employers."

Higher wages aren't the only thing many employees are seeking

Bodine noted the COVID-19 pandemic proved people could efficiently work from home. This has given more companies the ability to cut many overhead expenses, which can be used either to expand their brands or compensate employees.

She also said while higher wages are the driver for many people looking for a new job, others are focused on securing better benefits, finding a better work-life balance and improving their overall quality of life.

"I don't think (people) always are looking for more money," Bodine said. "I think they're looking for a package (deal with) more stability, and just looking to see what else is out there.

"Because so much has changed in the landscape of how a day-to-day job or career looks, in terms of where you work and how you work, there are just a lot of different options out there that there weren't before (the pandemic)."

With that shift in landscape, Bodine said employers now have a new pressing obstacle.

They grappled with COVID-19 restrictions and regulations, worked through a dramatic lack of workers in the pandemic's aftermath, and now they face the fears of possibly losing employees to other companies.

"There's been a lot of not only soul searching, but restructuring and looking at how you stay relevant, how you stay competitive and get the talent that you need to make your company run well," Bodine said.

Like Bodine, Kristopher McLane, president and CEO of the Panama City Beach Chamber of Commerce, said he believes it is now more important than ever for employers to provide their workers incentives.

McLane's group works to support and promote businesses in the area. He noted the projected rise in turnovers has sparked concerns for many businesses that are chamber members.

"You have to kind of keep up with your competition," McLane said. "It's important to keep up with your retention as best as you can, but not everyone is able to do that. Some companies are struggling as is."

He said a key hurdle for many companies is that new employees now want to start with higher salaries than they are accustomed to paying — a trend he believes also was caused by the pandemic, along with inflation.

Still, most companies want to find the right employee to fill an available position.

"If you want the right employee, and they have the skills that you need for that position, you're going to have to hire that person and probably pay them more," McLane said. "It's good that these employees are making more money, but at the same time, it is a little harder on the companies.

"But it is overall a good thing that wages are going up."

Why Central Moloney thinks the company is prepared for turnover predictions

Maintaining competitive wages and keeping skilled employees is something Chris Hart, president and CEO of Central Moloney, said he is very passionate about.

The Arkansas-based company works to manufacture and distribute electrical transformers and their components. In June, it held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its sixth location, which sits in the Panama City Beach area near the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport.

The facility is scheduled to be fully operational in the first quarter of 2023. It will create between 200 and 250 local jobs. New employees with no experience can expect to earn more than $50,000 a year.

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"I hate the notion of teams," Hart said. "I don't like calling people who we work with a team. ... We're not a team, we're a family at Central Moloney, and family goes all the way to the bone. That makes us unique.

"We're committed to each other through not just having each others' backs, (but) through making sure that we continue to pay incredible bonuses."

In addition to providing employees health insurance, life insurance and stock in the company, Central Moloney doled out more than $7 million in bonuses in 2021.

Hart said these incentives, along with a family-centered work environment and a focus on promoting from within, are why he believes Central Moloney will be OK if the predicted turnover increase happens.

The newest Panama City Beach facility adds to five existing Central Moloney locations, all of which are located in Arkansas. Between those five, there are more than 500 employees, and about half of them have been with the company for more than 20 years.

"I think it's (best) to make a leader out of a Central Moloney family member than to try and make a Central Moloney family member out of somebody else's leader," Hart said. "We like to grow our own people (and) promote from within because the investment has already been made. We've already planted those seeds."

This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Bay County ready to weather employee turnover with perks, incentives