In a post-pandemic world still beset by inflation pressures and labor costs and shortages, many health systems are carrying out initiatives to boost employee retention and lessen reliance on contract labor.

Companies are grappling with a new issue post Great Resignation: Not enough employees are quitting. 

A report released Nov. 6 by market research firm McKinsey & Co. provides insights into the nursing workforce and nurses' mental health and well-being. 

Workplace trends like "quiet quitting" and "coffee badging" are not materializing out of thin air. They're coming from TikTok, the video platform increasingly being used for career advice. 

Amid financial strain and operational challenges, hospitals and health systems have also faced challenges related to recruiting and retaining workers. Workers have exited their organizations, or considered quitting, citing reasons such as not feeling valued, lack of support for their well-being and wages not keeping up with inflation. However, there is a silver lining as healthcare employment has continued to trend up in certain areas.

Healthcare/products companies and manufacturers, including hospitals, have announced the third-most job cuts year to date among 30 industries and sectors measured, according to one new analysis.

HCA Midwest Health has joined forces with Kansas City (Mo.) University, the largest medical school in Missouri.

St. Louis-based Mercy has opened its first innovation unit as a "testing ground" for optimization ideas. 

Saum Sutaria, MD, CEO of Tenet Healthcare, mentioned at the beginning of the year the system's strategy would focus on hiring and retention, and reduce reliance on contract labor. During an Oct. 30 third quarter earnings call, he discussed the early results.

During a featured session at the 8th Annual Becker's Health IT + Digital Health + RCM Meeting,leaders from Aurora, Colo.-based UC Health discussed the system's Virtual Health Center that uses technology to support patient care, improve efficiency and enhance patient outcomes. 

This month, chatter about layoffs reached the highest level since July 2020, according to a monthly employee confidence index report from Glassdoor.

Building trust with front-line employees is crucial for any hospital or health system CEO. Workers want assurance that the leader of their organization is honest and values their feedback. While efforts to build this trust must be intentional and require ongoing efforts, they also provide opportunities for meaningful changes, two CEOs told Becker's.

Various phrases have made their way into the workplace in the last couple of years as employees reassess their jobs and roles. Members of Generation Z in entry-level jobs have often coined these phrases in reaction to increased dissatisfaction at work. Other phrases have also gained traction on social media and in the news related to the workplace.

In today’s gig economy, the growing availability of flex work has enabled more workers to prioritize work-life harmony and eschew the traditional 9-to-5, 40-hour work week. In short, people want more control of their work schedules and, in turn, more control over their personal lives.

"Boomerang" employees — those who return to a previous employer after spending time elsewhere — make up a relatively small share of the workforce, but are more prevalent in healthcare than most other industries, according to recent research from LinkedIn. 

It's time to adjust dated career expectations, according to a recent report from Korn Ferry. 

There are few challenges more significant for health system CEOs than evolving their current workforce strategies.

In 2020, more nurse practitioners than physicians entered the provider workforce. Now, as workforce shortages persist and healthcare organizations struggle to meet patient demand for care, industry experts say having a strategic mix of advanced practice providers is critical. 

The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that employment in the healthcare and social assistance sector will grow 9.7% from 2022 to 2032, primarily driven by the aging population and increasing prevalence of chronic conditions. This is three times as fast as the average job growth for the overall U.S. economy. 

A new CDC report quantifies what many healthcare workers know to be true: Risks to their mental health, safety and well-being have skyrocketed since the COVID-19 pandemic.