A dollar raise is indeed a lot of money when you reward a promising employee who is still on probation. Now you have ten other employees who have been with you longer and feel they need a raise to. The older employees are training the new guy.
I don't know what it costs others to bring a new employee on line but it cost us a lot. Safety clothing, training in procedures, special tool training and factory schools for specialized work. It will be months before a new employee becomes truly productive and the training never stops. Invest time and money into an employee and you're competitor steals him because he wants a different shift. Six Months later the employee wants to come back to work a different shift of because he thinks the benefits are better with you.
Some employees will stay for years and turn down offers because we treat them right. Some will jump ship for a plate of barbeque and a cold beer.
You get to where you watch an employee closely in probation. Establish goals and discuss the successes and the failures to meet those goals. Don't tell the employee there is a raise coming out of probation and don't promise specific amounts of money. Everyone needs a pleasant surprise.
