How Does Lack Of Recognition In Work Affect Employees?

Why Do Employees Need Recognition?

We’re in the midst of the busiest season of the year. This time of year can lead to burnout and decreased job satisfaction, so it’s good to stay aware of your team’s well-being. As a company, it’s crucial to focus on employee wellness all year long, but when things get stressful, that’s when it’s most important. 

One component of your team members’ well-being is employee recognition. Being recognized for our accomplishments and hard work is a basic human need. In the workplace, it’s extremely important for employee retention and decreasing turnover rates. According to a recent study, employee recognition decreased turnover by 31%. 

On the other hand, employees who feel unrecognized and under-appreciated are more likely to look elsewhere for work. Long-term lack of employee recognition won’t go unnoticed. That’s why it’s important to ensure you’re showing recognition and giving credit where it’s due. 

So what happens when you don’t take the time and effort to properly recognize your employees? On the flip side, what’s the impact of employee appreciation? Let’s talk about it. 

What Happens When You Don’t Recognize Team Members? 

Employee job satisfaction is impacted significantly by whether or not team members feel appreciated for their contributions. There are a number of negative effects when you don’t recognize your employees. Let’s take a look at some of the most common.

Tasks Feel Overwhelming

When your team members feel unrecognized or unappreciated in the workplace, the tasks they’re given may start to feel overwhelming. Sometimes this may be the result of stress and frustration. Other times, it might happen because you’re not aware of how many tasks are already on their plate. 

This is a great opportunity to take a step back and evaluate your team members’ workloads. Talk to them about what they’re working on and seek out honest feedback on what it takes to get these jobs done. Then, act accordingly. You may need to lighten someone’s load and recognize them for carrying so much responsibility. 

They’ll Consider Leaving Their Job

Feeling unappreciated at work can actually drive employees to leave their jobs altogether and seek employment elsewhere. In one survey, an astonishing 46% of employees who responded said they’d left a past job due to lack of recognition. Taking team performance for granted might yield similar results, so it’s critical to course-correct if you aren’t currently showing them how grateful you are for their contributions.

They Could Lose Motivation

Employees who feel unseen for what they do could also lose motivation on the job. It’s difficult to feel motivated when no one openly recognizes what you do for the team. Completing significant tasks and making valuable contributions to a workplace doesn’t feel as motivating when it seems like nobody notices.

They Might Question Their Skills 

When a team member pushes projects over the finish line, plays an important role on a team, or is integral in helping your company meet goals and objectives, they deserve to be recognized. This motivates your teammate to keep up the good work. On the other hand, a team member who goes above and beyond with no recognition might begin to second-guess their performance. 

You want the top performers on your team to know you appreciate their work. If not, they might wonder whether their work is worthy of recognition at all. They might even lose confidence in their skills and abilities - which will be detrimental to everyone in the long run.

They May Begin to Feel Isolated 

A lack of workplace recognition can cause employees to lose their sense of identity within your team. The negative emotions and loss of employee job satisfaction that can come from feeling overlooked may begin to make them feel detached, too. When this happens, it raises the likelihood that these employees will look elsewhere for a stronger company culture and sense of belonging. 

They’ll Produce Fewer Results 

Ultimately, a lack of employee recognition will cause team members to produce fewer results, which can lead to lower ROI. When your team members fear their efforts don’t matter, the entire team and the company as a whole can suffer when employees aren’t recognized. With lower ROI comes lowered employee performance and a bottom line that suffers as a result.

Custom Employee Appreciation Gifts 

One way to introduce more employee recognition into your workplace is by giving great employee appreciation gifts. When you give amazing gifts to your equally amazing employees, you’re showing them that you truly care about them - not just the work they do or the benefits they bring to your organization. In turn, you’ll help to raise morale, improve retention, and help your team members get excited about continuing to contribute to your company in a meaningful way. 

How to Group Order Corporate Gifts

What’s better than giving excellent employee appreciation gifts? Letting your team members choose their own gifts for employee recognition in 2024! Our Group Order tool is a convenient way to gift your employees on their terms. Each team member can select the gift they’ll appreciate most, taking the guesswork out of gift selection and ensuring they’ll love what they receive!

Contact Us

Convinced about the impact of employee appreciation yet? We know we are - and that’s why Merchology was born. Don’t get caught up in a lack of employee recognition. Instead, contact us today for more gift ideas, to get started with your Group Order tool, or to get your questions answered. We can’t wait to hear from you!