80% ATTRITION RATE IN THE COMMERCIAL DIVING INDUSTRY: FACT

OR FICTION?

By Kyra Richter

WE HAVE ALL HEARD THAT 80% OF DIVERS QUIT THE INDUSTRY

(INSERT AMOUNT FROM 1-5) YEARS AFTER LEAVING SCHOOL. SOME

SAY IT'S BECAUSE SELECTION OF THE WORKFORCE FROM THE START

IS TOO LENIENT.

…OR BECAUSE TRAINING IS DEFICIENT; OR BECAUSE THE NATURE OF

THE JOB IS SUCH THAT MOST CAN'T HACK IT SOONER OR LATER.

REGARDLESS OF ALL THAT, MANAGEMENT PLAYS A BIG ROLE IN

PROPERLY MOTIVATING AND PROVIDING INCENTIVES TO KEEP STRONG

PERFORMERS.

IN ANY CASE, AN 80%

ATTRITION RATE, IF TRUE,

IS TELLING US THERE IS A

BIG PROBLEM.

-80%

LET’S FIND OUT YOU WHAT YOU THINK

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Yes No

Q1, ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING IN THE DIVING INDUSTRY?

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

1-5 5-10 10-15 15-20 20+

% R

esp

on

den

ts

Years

Q2, IF YES, CURRENT EXPERIENCE

0%

5%

10%

15%

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25%

1-5 5-10 10-15 15-20 20+

% R

esp

on

den

ts

Years

Q3, IF NO, DURATION OF PAST EMPLOYMENT

IT’S IMPORTANT TO KNOW HOW SATISFIED YOU ARE WITH YOUR

CURRENT JOB….

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

The overall safety culture in your company

Your ability to apply your skills at work.

Satisfaction with pay/compensation

Satisfaction with Benefits or fringe benefits

The terms and conditions: such as hours, workbreaks, leave.

Your satisfaction with your coworkers

Your supervisors and management

Your overall satisfaction with the company

Your overall satisfaction with your career choice

Your overall satisfaction with your future in thisfield.

NUMBER RESPONDENTS SELECTED

Q4, CURRENT JOB SATISFACTION

Poor

Can use some improvements

Good

Excellent

THE GOOD NEWS: THE MAJORITY ARE

SATISFIED WITH THEIR CURRENT WORK.

• Overall, the respondents rated the

categories given as good .

• The categories of pay and benefits

were the only two consistently rated

as needing improvement or being

poor.

Though, overall, the respondents rated their job satisfaction as “good”, 33% demonstrated

some misgivings about their career future by saying it could use improvements.

This can’t necessarily be attributed to the industry when taken on its own. Most people have

some level of fear about their future given the times.

NOW WE CAN ESTABLISH WHAT NEEDS TO BE IMPROVED ON

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

The overall safety culture

Better pay/compensation?

Better benefits such as life and healthinsurance, and retirement

Improve the terms and conditions: such ashours, work breaks, vacations and rotations.

Promotions and incentives such as continuingtraining, and job enrichment to motivate

employees

Better trained supervisors and management

More protection for employees - job stability

NUMBER SELECTED

Q5 WHAT IS MISSING IN CURRENT EMPLOYMENT?

it's OK.

I believe It's the reason for the attritionrate.

It's deficient and needs improvement.

It's definitely missing.

WHAT IS MISSING?

• Pay, benefits such as health and life insurance, promotions and incentives, and job

stability were rated as either “definitely missing” or “deficient and needs improvement”.

• 49% of respondents said the overall safety culture was deficient, 10% answered it was

definitely missing and only 33% said it was “OK”.

• 47% of respondents said pay is deficient and needs improvement. 41% answered that

job stability is definitely missing and 22% said they believed this lack of stability and the

pay are the reasons for the attrition rate.

WE’VE IDENTIFIED THE PROBLEM. TO FIX IT WE NEED TO DEFINE IT AND

EXPLORE SOLUTIONS BASED ON OUR GATHERED INFORMATION

SO WE ASKED YOU QUESTIONS NOT ONLY TO HELP

UNDERSTAND WHAT THE PROBLEM IS, BUT WHAT

WE NEED TO DO TO SOLVE IT.

This is when psychologist began to study the relationship between what we need and what motivates us. All the

questions in this survey were based on the motivation theories of these psychologists. Often what motivates us as

individuals is similar within a culture or group.

See for yourself.

In the old days, it was thought that we are motivated to work simply because

we have to, so bosses “motivated” employees mostly through punishment.

We have since learned that in order for both the business to be successful

and the individual to be productive, it has to be more of a win-win

arrangement.

MASLOW’S NEED THEORY

This theory is more simple than the others.

We are motivated by our drive to fulfill unsatisfied needs. Starting with the most basic

to the more complex. Once one need has been taken care of, we progress to the next

need.

1. The first are the most basic biological and physiological needs, like food , shelter,

sleep-

2. Safety needs are protection from the elements, security, order, stability, freedom

from fear –

3. Love and belonging and friendship- from personal to at work.

4. Esteem- Achievement , mastery of a skill, independence, self-respect and

respect from others-

5. Self-Actualization- realizing your full potential, self- fulfillment, personal growth

and peak experiences-

YES, I PUT IN A TRICK QUESTION THERE: $ MONEY. AS MUCH AS YOU STATED DIVERS

NEED TO BE PAID BETTER, YOU PROVED THAT IT IS NOT THE BE-ALL END-ALL.

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45

If I do not fit in I look for work elsewhere

It's all about safety. If work conditions are not safe then Ileave.

None of these matter as long as I'm making money

It is important to me to have a good reputation, respect,and be recognized for my hard work

I aim to be the best at what I do

NUMBER OF RESPINDENTS WHO SELECTED

Q8, MASLOW'S NEED HIERARCHY

5

4

3

2

1

Question #8 asked you what was most important to you at work. Each statement

relates to one of Maslow’s needs. 1 is most important, 5 is least.

0%

10%

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70%

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100%

Maslow's Hierarchy

% S

elec

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as

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st Im

po

rtan

t to

wel

l-b

ein

g a

t w

ork

Money

Safety

Belonging

Esteem

Self-Actualization

THOUGH THIS MAY SEEM SIMPLE AND LOGICAL, IT TIES IN TO THE OTHER QUESTIONS IN

THAT THE MAJORITY OF THOSE WHO ANSWERED, RATED THE NEED FOR SELF-

ACTUALIZATION (ACHIEVEMENT) HIGHEST.

MCCLELLAND’S HUMAN MOTIVATION THEORY David McClelland built on the work of Maslow and his needs hierarchy by stating that regardless of age,

gender or culture we all have three motivating drivers and one of these will be our dominant motivator. The

motivator is learned and largely dependent on our culture and life experiences. It can be viewed

individually or for a work group.

MOTIVATOR CHARACTERISTICS

Achievement • Likes to set and accomplish challenging goals

• Takes calculated risk to accomplish goals

• Often likes to work alone

• Likes feedback on progress and achievements

Affiliation • Wants to belong to a group

• Wants to be liked and may go along with what

the group wants to do.

• Doesn’t like high risk or uncertainty

• Favors collaboration over competition.

Power • Wants to influence others (personal power want

to control; institutional power want to lead).

• Likes to win arguments.

• Enjoys competition and winning.

• Enjoys status and recognition.

WHAT YOU NEED TO BE CONTENT AT WORK?

YOUR ANSWER:

0 20 40 60 80 100

1

2

3

NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS WHO SELECTED

Pri

ori

ty R

atin

g

Q6, MCCLELLAND'S NEED THEORY

A challenging job andpersonal responsibility forits success

To influence others andevents at work

A social connection withcolleages and superiors

YOU ARE ACHIEVERS.

• According to one recent study, blue collar workers find McClelland’s need for affiliation

the most important factor of their work, while white collar workers prefer the need for

achievement.

• YOU are achievement oriented professionals. For achievers, accomplishment and

success on a task is an end in itself and the monetary reward serves as a measure of this

accomplishment. This is an important INSIGHT into why divers feel underpaid.

• We have established you are not generally greedy (from question #8).

• Investigations by McClelland indicated that the need for achievement score increases

with a rise in occupational level. Invariably, businessmen, managers, and entrepreneurs

are high achievement scorers.

• However, at higher levels of management, by contrast, leadership is more strongly

leaning toward the need for power.

HERZBERG’S NEEDS THEORY

What motivates and what demotivates us are two separate elements.

Motivators such as challenging work, responsibility and recognition lead to increased

satisfaction and commitment.

Hygiene factors such as pay (salary) and benefits, job security and supervisory

practices do not motivate us, but when they are deficient or missing they demotivate us.

When missing, hygiene factors lead to us quitting or looking for somewhere else to

work. They also create a very inefficient workforce.

For perspective: Herzberg’s theory was developed from data collected from 203 interviews with professionals. At the time of

preparing this report this survey has been answered by 136 divers.

HYGIENE MOTIVATOR

Pay, benefits Responsibility

Company policies Recognition

Quality of Supervision Challenging work (the work itself)

Job Security Advancement and promotion

Working Conditions Personal achievement

Co-workers Growth

LOW HYGIENE + LOW MOTIVATION = High turnover, minimum quality work, a revolving door where employees come and

go.

LOW HYGIENE + HIGH MOTIVATION = The job is exciting, but the pay is not commensurate nor are the work conditions.

HIGH HYGIENE + HIGH MOTIVATION = Employees are committed and excited about work and have few complaints.

HIGH HYGIENE + LOW MOTIVATION = Employees have few complaints but “it’s just a means to a good paycheck”.

HERZBERG’S NEEDS THEORY

This is our

industry!

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

Pay

Possibility to get better at what I do and develop my skills

The work itself is exciting and challenging

Job security

Safe working conditions

Promotion and growth in the company- I want to be a boss one day!

Company policies that work well

To have a network or friends with colleagues

Work/Life balance

Prestige

Appreciation for the work that I do

To have quality supervision

% RESPONDENTS

Q7, HERZBERG'S TWO FACTOR THEORY

YOU SELECTED:

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Pay

Possibility to get better at what I do and developmy skills

The work itself is exciting and challenging

% RESPONDENTS

Q7, TOP 3 MOTIVATORS

Pay

Possibility to get better at what Ido and develop my skills

The work itself is exciting andchallenging

STUDIES COMPARING BLUE-COLLAR WORKERS TO WHITE-

COLLAR PROFESSIONALS HAVE SHOWN THAT BLUE-COLLAR

WORKERS ARE MORE MOTIVATED BY HYGIENE FACTORS.

ASIDE FROM THE OBVIOUS IMPORTANCE OF BEING PROPERLY

COMPENSATED FOR THE NATURE OF THE WORK WE DO, DIVERS

OVERALL FIND MOTIVATORS MORE IMPORTANT.

THIS SHOWS, AGAIN, THAT DIVING IS MUCH MORE THAN JUST A

TRADE.

SO HOW DO WE IMPROVE?

COMPANIES NEED TO REALIZE THAT THE

REVOLVING DOOR IS EXPENSIVE TO THEM.

=

IN OUR INDUSTRY, NEW HIRES NEED TRAINING

IF YOU THINK TRAINING IS EXPENSIVE, TRY

IGNORANCE.

Many respondents commented that what they want is continuing training and opportunities to expand

their knowledge and experience. It is a better investment to provide continuing training than it is to

constantly train new hires.

EMPLOYEE RETENTION

Remember that it isn’t just “the ones who can’t hack it” who leave the industry or job hop. An easy

way to justify lack of action or accountability is to blame others.

Many good, capable divers with potential for accomplishment walk out of a job or away from the

industry.

It can be as simple as providing direction, goals,

giving feedback on achievement .

Companies need to structure a progression plan

and make room to promote those who want that

career path and demonstrate the ability and

potential to succeed in that path (job enrichment

and rotation also help).

“The worst thing is the assumption by managers that people should know without them providing

proper training. Then the supervisors or PMs can form opinions about someone without much push

to take responsibility to correct or coach them, which leads to someone sitting at home because a

supervisor said "they talk too much". Good old boy mentality still clinging like a cancer” From a

respondent’s comments.

Retention isn’t only about what you do for your

workers but how well you train your leaders.

Training of managers is severely lacking. Another respondent’s comment.

Valorar al trabajador sobre todas las cosas, no ser solo un numero mas dentro de la compañía a la

cual presto un servicio, esto significa que sienta que lo hago bien, que se reconozcan aquellas

cosas buenas, como también las deficientes, hoy en día se le da mas realce a lo malo que lo

bueno.

(Value the worker above all things, not just as one more number within the company which I give

my services to. This means that I want to feel good and be acknowledged for the good things and

what needs improvement. Now a days more attention is paid to the bad than the good). From a

Respondent’s comments.

One respondent made the comment that the problem isn’t so much the industry as it is the

newer generations.

This is a valid comment, except these are times when up to three generations are sharing the

workplace, and the workplace needs to adapt to cross generational needs as well.

Studies show that in 2014 78% of business leaders rated retention and engagement urgent or important.

Some of the reasons for low engagement and turnover, as listed in a Forbes magazine article can directly

apply to the diving industry.

• A lack of investment in development and talent mobility, make it difficult for high performers to

advance.

• A non-inclusive culture that cannot attract and retain today’s more diverse workforce (sometimes as a

result of history, or in this case, once again, the nature and history of this profession).

• Old fashioned work conditions that simply make work difficult (or more difficult than it needs to be).

http://www.forbes.com/sites/joshbersin/2014/04/10/its-time-to-rethink-the-employee-engagement-issue/