How do I work out the employee turnover rate for disclosure B8 of the European Union (EU) voluntary standard for small companies (VSME)?
Divide the number of employees who left during the year by the average number of employees during the year, then multiply by 100. Only companies with 50 or more employees must give it. VSME is the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group's Voluntary standard for non-listed micro-, small- and medium-sized undertakings.
Who has to give it
The standard says: if you employ 50 or more employees, you shall disclose the employee turnover rate for the reporting period. Under 50, the line is not asked.
Who counts as a leaver
The standard says employee turnover refers to employees who leave voluntarily or due to dismissal, retirement or death in service. So a resignation, a termination, a retirement and a death all count. Think of a train station: turnover counts everyone who got off during the year, whatever the reason.
The formula
Number of employees who left during the reporting year, divided by the average number of employees during the reporting year, times 100.
Records that answer it
- Exit register or full and final settlement list: the number who left.
- Muster roll at the start and end of the year, or monthly payroll counts: the average.
- Use the same count (headcount or full-time equivalent) as in your B8 employee table. The text we read does not say which; that is our suggestion for consistency.
Example: a unit with about 64 staff
- Employees at the start: 60. At the end: 68. Average: (60 + 68) / 2 = 64
- Leavers in the year: 5 resignations, 2 retirements, 1 dismissal = 8
- Turnover rate: 8 / 64 x 100 = 12.5%
Numbers are an example. Averaging only the start and the end is one simple way; monthly counts give a better average.
What Senseible does here
Senseible fills the energy and emissions disclosure from fuel invoices and electricity bills. This disclosure is not part of it today; it comes from your own registers and papers.
- What is the VSME standard?
- Headcount or full-time equivalent employees
- Accident rate per 200,000 hours
Last reviewed 2026-11-07. Facts are from the standard's own text, with the paragraph numbers named in the source line. The European Commission adopted its own standard for voluntary use in a Delegated Regulation of 3 July 2026, which is not in force until it is published in the Official Journal and may differ from this text, so ask your buyer which one it means. Our own readings are marked as such.