Does Your Business Recycling Strategy Please Your Employees?

There are many reasons why commercial businesses should recycle. Not only is it a great way to reduce waste collection costs, but it also benefits the environment by reducing pollutants in the air and lessening local landfill usage. A successful recycling program is easy to set up and maintain, but many businesses continue to look the other way. The problem? Employees are taking notice and don’t appreciate it—especially millennials.
According to globally integrated research organization Lightspeed, one in ten millennials would quit their jobs if they found out their current employer was not sustainable. This is not an opinion that should be ignored, as millennials have officially exceeded Generation X as the largest number of employees in the United States work force as of 2015. And since millennials are known to move from job to job after only working at a company for a few years (especially compared to Generation X or baby boomers) employers have a higher risk of losing this generation to other companies if their values are not up to par.
Millennials have the power to shape today’s workplace practices, and being sustainable is a top priority on their list. They’re ready to make a difference and willing to turn down job offers that don’t align with their beliefs. As millennials and younger generations continue to enter the job market, employers should pay attention to the image they project and adapt their sustainability policies to attract and maintain employees.
Lightspeed’s study also discovered other significant key findings about millennials’ views on sustainability in the workplace, including:

• Nine in ten millennials (18-34) agree it’s important they work for a sustainable company compared to Generation X and baby boomers.
• 82% of millennials look for ways to help companies become more sustainable and 67% feel they have a good influence in their workplace to make an impact.
• Over 80% of millennials whose company does not have a recycling program in place believe employers should be responsible on encouraging recycling in the work place.
• Over two-thirds of millennials were willing to give up social media for a week if everyone at their company recycled.

As you can see, having a strong business recycling program in place is becoming vital to company and employee success. If you don’t have a plan in place, now is the time to take that next step! At Carolina Fibre Corporation, our goal is to help businesses become more sustainable. We offer extensive recycling services including paper, plastic, and aluminum recycling, confidential shredding, and sustainability consulting. Let us help you develop an effective recycling solution that you and your employees will greatly appreciate!