Stoughton Health believes strongly in investing in its people as we are a business of “people taking care of people.” As such, multiple strategies have been deployed to provide innovative investments in recruitment and retention. Strategies include employee bonuses, workforce development grants and increasing our minimum wage to remain competitive.
In January 2022, Stoughton Health implemented a Staff Referral Bonus. Our best referrals come from employees who are invested in our mission and vision so strongly that they feel compelled to share with their family and friends. Our Staff Referral Bonus rewards our own team members in the amount of $1,500 for recruiting new team members who support our culture of excellence together.
Another ongoing bonus offered to our clinical staff is a Critical Staffing bonus. Throughout the pandemic, we faced challenges with staffing. Our team members never fell short and worked additional shifts to meet department needs. As a thank you and recognition of their teamwork and dedication, we implemented bonus pay in the form of time and a half to staff that picked up a dire staffing need regardless of if they are full or part-time.
Stoughton Health has shown their appreciation of all employees in the form of financial support and monetary bonuses. At the beginning of the pandemic, some departments were shut down entirely while others had reduced volumes resulting in reduced staffing. Employees were forced to adapt to less take-home pay and additional stress during an already challenging time. In an effort to alleviate the financial burden, Stoughton Health’s administrative team and hospital-contracted physicians collectively agreed to take a 10% pay cut for three months in the summer of 2021. The funds were aggregated to alleviate the financial burden placed on our employees by supplementing pay and insurance costs. Shortly thereafter, we deployed “Recognition and Recovery” bonuses in the fall of 2021. This bonus was based on an individual’s negative financial impact and ranged from 2-8% of an individual’s annual salary.
In September 2022, Stoughton Health paid out a second bonus to recognize employee longevity. We take pride in seeing employees choose us to be their employer and stay with us throughout the many seasons of their life. We also recognize that we would never be able to provide the exceptional care that we do without our dedicated employees. To show our appreciation, Stoughton Health offered “Service Recognition” bonuses to recognize and celebrate the longevity of its employees. Employees received a tiered bonus based on their years of service to Stoughton Health. Service Recognition bonuses ranged from 2-5% of an employee’s annual salary based on their years of service.
Last but certainly not least, we raised the minimum wage for our employees twice over the last year and a half, first in May 2021 and again in October 2022. We recognize that competitive wages are necessary in our efforts recruit and retain talent for our organization.