Calculate employee turnover based on SHRM standards
Include both voluntary and involuntary departures.
Average Employees0
Turnover Rate (Period)0.00%
Annualized Projection (If Monthly)0.00%
Understanding the SHRM Turnover Rate Calculation
Employee turnover is a critical metric for HR professionals, indicating the stability of a workforce and the effectiveness of retention strategies. The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) provides a standardized method for calculating this rate to ensure consistency and comparability across different periods and organizations.
The SHRM Formula
The standard formula used to calculate the turnover rate for a specific period (usually monthly or quarterly) is:
Turnover Rate = (Number of Separations / Average Number of Employees) × 100
Where:
Number of Separations: The total number of employees who left the organization during the period. This includes voluntary resignations, involuntary terminations, and retirements. It typically excludes internal transfers or temporary leaves.
Average Number of Employees: This is calculated by taking the headcount at the beginning of the period plus the headcount at the end of the period, divided by two.
Why Accurate Headcount Matters
To get a precise calculation, you must define "headcount" correctly. According to SHRM standards, this usually includes all employees on the payroll. Do not include independent contractors or temporary agency workers in this count unless they are directly on your payroll. The formula for the average is:
Average Employees = (Beginning Headcount + Ending Headcount) / 2
Interpreting Your Results
Once you have your percentage, context is key. A "good" turnover rate varies significantly by industry. For example:
Retail and Hospitality: Often see higher turnover rates, sometimes exceeding 50% annually.
Professional Services: Typically strive for rates below 10-15%.
Government and Education: Usually maintain very low turnover rates due to tenure systems.
If your calculator shows a monthly rate of 2%, your annualized turnover (projection for the year) would be roughly 24%, which indicates that nearly a quarter of your workforce turns over every year. This can have significant implications for recruitment costs, training expenses, and institutional knowledge loss.
Annualized Turnover Projection
The calculator above provides an "Annualized Projection." This figure assumes that the turnover rate calculated for the current month will persist for the entire year. It is calculated by multiplying the monthly rate by 12. This helps HR leaders forecast annual retention challenges based on current monthly data.
function calculateSHRMTurnover() {
// Get input values
var separationsInput = document.getElementById('numSeparations');
var startInput = document.getElementById('headcountStart');
var endInput = document.getElementById('headcountEnd');
var separations = parseFloat(separationsInput.value);
var startCount = parseFloat(startInput.value);
var endCount = parseFloat(endInput.value);
// Validate inputs
if (isNaN(separations) || isNaN(startCount) || isNaN(endCount)) {
alert("Please enter valid numbers for all fields.");
return;
}
if (startCount < 0 || endCount < 0 || separations < 0) {
alert("Values cannot be negative.");
return;
}
// Calculate Average Employees
var avgEmployees = (startCount + endCount) / 2;
// Handle division by zero edge case
if (avgEmployees === 0) {
alert("Average headcount cannot be zero.");
return;
}
// Calculate Turnover Rate
var turnoverRate = (separations / avgEmployees) * 100;
// Calculate Annualized Rate (Assuming the input is for 1 month)
var annualizedRate = turnoverRate * 12;
// Update the DOM with results
var resultsDiv = document.getElementById('shrmResults');
resultsDiv.style.display = "block";
document.getElementById('resAvgEmployees').innerText = avgEmployees.toLocaleString(undefined, { minimumFractionDigits: 1, maximumFractionDigits: 1 });
document.getElementById('resTurnoverRate').innerText = turnoverRate.toFixed(2) + "%";
document.getElementById('resAnnualized').innerText = annualizedRate.toFixed(2) + "%";
}