According to recent statistics, CNA turnover is exceptionally high. In 2025, reports indicated a turnover rate of up to 42.34%, down from 44% in 2024, but only slightly. While turnover in nursing is at an all-time high across all levels, turnover among CNAs remains highest. As the largest employers of CNAs, these rapid turnovers impact long-term care and assisted living facilities the most.
To reduce the rate in your assisted living facility, you must first understand what’s driving your CNAs out that revolving door. Once you understand the catalyst for your CNAs’ mass exodus, your healthcare organization can work to reduce turnover among these essential assisted living staff members.
Non-Competitive Compensation
Poor compensation is the biggest reason CNAs leave. Wage growth for CNAs has slowed significantly over the past year. It isn’t enough to stick with industry “standards” when it comes to paying your CNAs. Studies show that nursing staff leave their jobs for pay alone. When you consider how much of your budget goes into recruiting and onboarding new staff, raising wages to retain CNAs seems to be a no-brainer.
In addition to financial compensation, offering benefits such as childcare assistance, PTO, bonuses, flexible scheduling, tuition reimbursement, and meal stipends is highly motivating.
Zero Career Growth Opportunities
Feeling stuck with no room to advance is a reason many CNAs look elsewhere. Create a path for your entry-level nursing staff to climb the ladder. Offer tuition reimbursement, specialty certifications (such as dementia care, wound care, restorative nursing, for example) to increase pay and boost competency. Begin a mentorship program that pairs your new hires with seasoned staff. Finally, consider pairing with a local college or nursing school to create bridge programs and leadership tracks for your CNAs. It’s a small investment with a huge payoff.
Burnout Driven by Scheduling and Workload
When CNAs are over-scheduled due to turnover causing understaffing, they burn out quickly. Offer flexible scheduling, limit mandatory overtime, and increase PTO. When the workload gets to be too much, your nursing staff should have access to therapy or peer support groups that can help mitigate the stress that contributes to burnout.
Lack of Leadership
Manager relationships can make or break nursing staff. Invest in leadership development that goes beyond the basics. Check in with your staff to find out how well leadership does their job. Take their opinions seriously, and hold managers accountable for turnover among CNAs.
Poor Onboarding
Those first 90 days are a crucial period as far as staff retention. By combining a structured onboarding program with mentorship and preceptorship, you bring your newest hires into the fold and guide them through workplace culture so they are acclimated and part of the team. Check in with your new hires regularly during the first 90 days. Polish your own communication skills so you really listen and hear the concerns of your newly hired CNAs.
No Recognition for Excellence
In today’s highly competitive nursing jobs market, if a member of your CNA staff feels their efforts go unrecognized, they will move on. Poor management, unclear paths for career development, and a workplace culture that fails to prioritize respect by recognizing excellence are a recipe for turnover among CNAs.
- Recognize your employees’ efforts regularly and publicly, not just during a review.
- Remember, your CNAs are an essential part of the care team, often the closest staff members to your residents. Allow them to weigh in regularly regarding care.
- If a member of your staff opts to leave, conduct an honest and open exit interview and address any shortcomings immediately.
No Quick-Fix
There is really no single fix for retaining your CNA staff. However, if you recognize your organization in any of these proven reasons that drive your nursing staff out the door, then make the changes now, and your assisted living facility can reduce turnover among CNAs.
For more information on how assisted living facilities can reduce CNA turnover, please contact BOS Medical Staffing. We are your staffing solution.
