Promotions, Transfers, and Separations
In the past, employees stayed with a company for most or all of their working life. Today’s employees, however, are more likely to change jobs several times as they search for better opportunities. In the United States, most organizations experience (21) , costly employee (22) as employees leave for one reason or another. Turnover occurs because of promotions, transfers, and separations.
A promotion is an advancement, or (23) movement within an organization to a position with increased authority, responsibility, and salary. In some companies, (24) —the length of time a person has been with the company—is the key issue in determining who should be promoted. A transfer is a horizontal move from one job to another within a company. Transfers allow workers to obtain new skills or to find a new (25) within an organization when their old position has been (26) because of automation, decreased sales, or some other factors.
A separation is the departure of the employee from the organization. Separations occur because of resignation, layoff, and retirement. Resignation is giving up one’s job (27) . A layoff is (28) of employment due to slow business conditions, the elimination of specific jobs, or the closing of work facilities. Retirement is separation because of age or after a specified number of years of service.
A well-organized human resources department strives to (29) losses due to separations and transfers because recruiting and training new employees is very expensive. A high turnover (30) in an organization may signal problems with the selection or training process or with the compensation program.

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