Cassandra, Employee continuity, or lack thereof, negatively impacts the entire organization. The task for which the former employee was responsible still need to be done, so continuing employees need to step up to the plate and take them on. Depending on how management handles that scenario can positively or negatively impact morale. You mention finding the right candidate and then training takes time and the longer that goes on, the more negative the impact. Short term fill-in is usually okay as long as that employee is recognized for taking on additional responsibility and some additional compensation provided. The policy/procedure issue you raise may not be a problem if you have a strong onboarding process. There is still potential for slippage, however. To retain your employees and, therefore, reduce the issues created by turnover, you need to create an environment by treating employees with dignity and respect and through your actions letting them know that you value them and their contributions. I know, all of this is sometimes easier said than done but turnover is costly to an organization, so finding ways to improve the turnover rate does impact the bottom line. Dr. Patricia Kapper