While some businesses may still question whether to implement an ethics hotline, the truth is they reduce operational costs. Not only can you boost employee morale by improving the workplace, but you save money too.

When implemented and used correctly, ethics hotlines are powerful company improvement tools. There’s nothing to fear and everything to gain.

1. Decreased Turnover

The time spent recruiting, hiring and training new employees costs money. You could easily spend a week or more just training a new employee. Plus, there’s extra time involved as they settle into their routine and start meshing with the rest of the team. During this time, their productivity isn’t nearly as high as it could be.

If you’re constantly dealing with valuable employees leaving due to ethics issues, you’re losing money constantly too. An ethics hotline helps reduce operational costs by making employees feel safer and happier where they are, which decreases your turnover rate.

2. Avoid Costly Safety Lawsuits

Cutting corners when it comes to safety might sound like a good idea, but it never ends well. Unethical managers and companies might try to bully injured employees from filing a lawsuit, but eventually, someone will and they’ll win. This not only hurts your reputation, but it can increase insurance costs.

By having an ethics hotline in place and taking action when reports are filed, you improve your company’s safety. Employees are safer and you avoid costly safety lawsuits.

3. Avoid OSHA Fines

OSHA has strict guidelines to create safer workplaces. If you’re found in violation of any of them, you could face hefty fines. Plus, you might even lose certain certifications, reducing the number and type of clients you can have. If you want to reduce operational costs, encourage employees to report any OSHA violations to your ethics hotline.

You create a safer workplace, OSHA’s happy and you reduce the chance of fines. Plus, having a reputation for quality and safety leads to more customers.

4. Reduce Fraud

Most fraud is discovered through tips. Without a hotline, you could be losing thousands every year without a clue of where the money’s going. Typically, another employee notices financial discrepancies and is able to let you know. However, without an ethics hotline in place, they might be afraid to report anything.

With a clear reporting process that’s been proven to work, employees are much more likely to report potential fraud. This saves you money immediately and decreases the chance of other employees trying the same thing.

5. Decrease Theft

Employee theft adds up over time. Even if it’s only small items, if you have a hundred employees all stealing something that costs $5 or $10 every week, you’d lose at least $26,000 every year. For example, if restaurant employees are taking steaks or stealing alcohol, this adds up and could put your business in the red if you’re a smaller company.

By implementing an ethics hotline, you reduce operational costs by relying on your ethical employees to report theft. If it’s a widespread issue, you can implement new policies to reduce the issue. Over time, you save thousands every year.

Ethics hotlines make things better, not worse. Implementing one and using it to improve your business is a great financial move.