Building in more flexibility to worker schedules is not a new strategy for the senior living industry. But in 2024, operators are still tweaking those strategies to improve their staffing practices.

The concept has worked well in other customer-facing industries. After global retailer Ikea faced a turnover problem in 2022 and 2023, the company implemented better benefits, higher wages and a more flexible, tech-oriented scheduling system. Using that approach, Ikea cut turnover to 25.1% in the U.S. last year, a marked decrease from the 33.6% turnover rate seen in 2022.

Some senior living operators, such as St. Charles, Missouri-based Arrow Senior Living are taking similar routes in their own staffing strategies. Arrow has an in-house app referred to as The Archer where employees can give up, trade shifts or pick up shifts within the company, including within other departments.

The app, which was created more than a year ago during a “hackathon” competition, has led to higher staffing coverage and improved communication in staffing where implemented, according to Arrow Senior Living Managing Director Amber Moore.

Other companies implementing more flexibility in scheduling include Westminster Communities of Florida, which is adding flexible scheduling and other arrangements to allow staff to manage workloads and reduce burnout; and Sinceri Senior Living, which is utilizing employees with shared communities and offering more flexible hours for shifts.

Creating more flexibility

The Covid-19 pandemic has upended many operational facets of the senior living industry, and staffing is chief among them.

In order to attract top talent, companies both inside the senior living industry and outside it sought to build in the perks and benefits that workers want. One company in tune with what workers want is Kare, a company that connects staffers with open shifts at communities across the country.

Outside of pay, work flexibility is among the top asks coming from frontline senior living staff members, according to Kare CEO Charles Turner. Other popular perks include subsidized education, improved financial literacy and more access to mental health benefits.

Turner said many operators have set shifts such as 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., 2 p.m. to 10 p.m., and 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. – and that is not always ideal for workers.

“Most senior living leaders tend to work a typical ‘8-5’ workday, but we don’t ask the same from our front-line staff,” Turner told SHN. “We need to take a harder look at matching the person-hours needed with our residents’ needs.”

“Teams have responded well to the call-in tracking feature, and it’s been fun to see employees using it to pick up shifts and move their shifts around to meet their needs,” Moore said.

Turner said that operators will naturally find they are overstaffed during certain times and understaffed others, creating openings for new staffing strategies.

“This will create partial shifts and unlock a large amount of part-time worker’s capacity,” he said.

Vancouver, Washington-based Sinceri Senior Living has this year started experimenting with more flexible scheduling, according to Tiffany Akin, vice president of human resources and Kaylee Frye, recruitment and retention manager. Along with offering different shift lengths ranging from as low as four hours to up to 12,the company has created talent pools with which to staff communities in a cluster, similar to an approach Sonida Senior Living was trying earlier this year.

Currently Sinceri offers four-hour shifts at a limited number of communities for employees with tight or unique schedules that might not allow them to work a standard eight hours at any one time.

“It allows for greater autonomy and can improve overall satisfaction among staff,” Akin said. “We’re confident these strategies will enhance our operational efficiency and employee satisfaction.”

Moore said early on there hadn’t been many applicants asking for flexible scheduling. However, the team opted for a “best of both worlds approach,” which includes consistent schedules.

So far, the approach appears to be helping at Arrow Senior Living, which has seen a 12% improvement in turnover in 2024 compared to the same timeframe year over year. Moore also noted that “teams have responded well to the call-in tracking feature, and it’s been fun to see employees using it to pick up shifts and move their shifts around to meet their needs.”

“Do I think that flexible scheduling is a bit of a trend? Maybe,” Moore said. “[The Archer] essentially has the framework to provide structured or flexible scheduling with a safety net of meeting budget requirements. I’m curious to see if, or rather when, the industry starts pivoting toward something like what we’ve created that provides automation and consistency to scheduling.”

Westminster Communities of Florida makes schedules more flexible for workers by enhancing communication, streamlining technologies and implementing a digital scheduling system which allows employees to pick up shifts that best fit their availability.

Flexible scheduling could provide some additional benefits, and operators should implement it alongside other staffing strategies, according to Amanda Birch, vice president of human resources at Westminster Communities of Florida.

“While a completely flexible schedule without manager approval might not be fully viable, a hybrid approach that incorporates flexibility within a structured framework could provide the benefits of flexibility while maintaining the necessary standards of care and operational efficiency,” Birch said.

Implementation challenges

Birch said that while more flexible scheduling may offer a variety of benefits, there are also challenges that could arise from it, particularly if operators allow for shift trades and exchanges without requiring manager approval.

“Flexible scheduling may pose challenges in maintaining adequate staffing levels at all times,” Birch said. “Without manager approval, scheduling conflicts and communication breakdowns may occur, potentially impacting care quality and teamwork.”

She added there are also some concerns regarding regulatory compliance, and in order to maintain the proper staffing ratios, a flexible scheduling program would need to be created in line with requirements.

However, Westminster Communities of Florida is already looking into solutions to address these issues, including establishing parameters for the scheduling program, core hours that require coverage and allow employees to swap or bid for shifts to ensure coverage.

Birch said a pilot program would be the best way to test flexible scheduling, either in a small department or facility, in order to “to assess feasibility, address issues and refine the approach.”

Looking ahead, however, Turner noted tapping into more flexible labor may become a requirement for operators to be able to balance their workforces.

“Everyone thinks they are going to out hustle the community down the street. But something has to give,” he said. “Some will do it better than others, but we must solve this problem by tapping into more flexible labor, redefining what ‘our’ employees mean, and we must be willing to adopt innovative technology that will make better decisions than many humans do.”