Definition of Low Morale

Low employee morale can be bad for business. To prevent it from disrupting the work environment and becoming costly to your company, address low morale as soon as you observe it.

Morale is the spirit of your employees. It's based on a series of feelings, such as appreciation, and can be either high or low.

Morale affects employees’ willingness to complete assignments, as well as their behavior, cheerfulness and discipline. Low morale impacts these areas negatively, and, according to the CBS Business Network (BNET.com), it can be contagious among your workforce.

Low morale breeds a reduction in productivity and performance. When your staff has low morale they are less eager to give you their best, which leads to poor quality work or assignments that are not turned in on time. Additionally, low morale has a direct correlation with high absenteeism.

Low morale comes with a high price tag. Unproductive work hours are wasted employer dollars, which cannot be recovered. When employees are getting paid to work, but use their work time for other things, they are harming the company's financial health.

High employee morale is the ultimate goal, because it means that employees are happy in their jobs and are willing to give employers their best.