Across the country, behavioral health providers are grappling with a crisis that shows no signs of slowing down: a severe shortage of qualified professionals. It’s estimated that over one-third of Americans live in areas with a shortage of behavioral health providers—a staggering figure that reflects the widening gap between mental health and substance use care needs and the workforce available to meet them. While many providers struggle without a clear path forward, Behavioral Health Workforce Retention Strategies are becoming more critical than ever. Landmark Recovery is responding with action, launching a comprehensive internal initiative focused on both recruitment and long-term retention of staff.
Landmark Recovery, a Franklin, Tennessee-based provider of substance use disorder (SUD) treatment services, operates across a growing list of states, offering both private-pay and Medicaid-based care. Recognizing that staff turnover and recruitment difficulties are among its most pressing challenges, Landmark CEO Matt Boyle and his leadership team have developed what they call the “Escalator Program”—a sweeping, structured career development and financial support plan that seeks to give employees something they often lack in the healthcare field: stability and predictability.
The Scope of the Problem
The workforce crisis isn’t limited to Landmark Recovery. Across behavioral health, providers face fierce competition for qualified professionals, from nurses and therapists to peer support specialists and administrative staff. Health care already has higher turnover rates than many other industries, but behavioral health is especially vulnerable due to emotionally demanding work, long hours, and historically low wages. “We have been struggling … with recruitment,” Boyle said in an interview with Behavioral Health Business. “It’s a very tight workforce, and we’ve seen the time to fill positions definitely increase.”
Many experts agree that the industry needs to implement innovative behavioral health workforce retention strategies if it hopes to stabilize staffing and meet the rising demand for care. The Escalator Program is Landmark’s answer to that call—designed to boost retention, reduce burnout, and build a sustainable workforce pipeline for the future.
The Escalator Program: What It Offers
Structured Wage Progression and Pay Transparency
At the heart of the program is a clearly defined earnings timeline. Every employee is informed up front of the wage increases they can expect at six months, one year, and two years into their employment. After two years, further raises are determined by the employee’s manager based on performance and role.
Boyle emphasized that this kind of financial predictability is often as important to workers as the actual amount they are paid. “Telling someone, ‘Hey, you’ll get a raise a year from now,’ doesn’t do anyone any good and it doesn’t factor into their calculus of staying or leaving,” he said. “Most people who work for a company, as opposed to being an entrepreneur, really value that certainty.”
Employees in the same job category are paid the same rate according to their tenure, with adjustments made based on the cost of living in their geographic location. This ensures fairness while also recognizing regional economic differences.
The baseline hourly rate under the program starts at $16, rising to $20 per hour after two years—a rate that exceeds the minimum wage in every state in which Landmark operates. Boyle believes this represents a “livable wage” in the company’s markets, helping employees afford housing, daily expenses, and family needs.
Programs like this one are among the most effective behavioral health workforce retention strategies because they take the guesswork out of compensation and make employees feel valued from day one.
Student Loan Repayment
Recognizing that student debt is one of the most significant financial barriers for healthcare professionals, Landmark built a generous loan repayment component into the program. After just six months on the job, employees become eligible to receive up to $5,000 per year toward their student loans—an amount with no lifetime cap. This benefit is applicable to all qualified employees, including nurses, therapists, and other licensed professionals.
Boyle notes that this benefit alone can amount to $400 more per month than many employees’ required loan payments, offering them a real opportunity to pay down debt faster or redirect money toward other life goals. Student debt relief is a powerful tool in any organization’s behavioral health workforce retention strategies, especially when trying to recruit and keep recent graduates in the field.
Health Savings Account (HSA) Contributions
Healthcare costs remain a major concern for many employees in the behavioral health field. To reduce the burden of out-of-pocket medical expenses, Landmark will begin making monthly contributions to employees’ HSAs after one year of employment. Over the course of a year, these contributions will total up to half of the employee’s expected out-of-pocket care costs.
This additional benefit offers peace of mind and aligns with the broader goals of smart behavioral health workforce retention strategies: reduce stress, increase engagement, and demonstrate employer investment in employee wellbeing.
Retirement Matching
The Escalator Program also includes a 401(k) matching program, in which Landmark contributes up to 4% of an employee’s salary, dollar-for-dollar, after one year of employment. In an industry where retirement planning is often overlooked, this benefit helps staff build long-term financial security and supports middle-class stability.
Retirement contributions may not seem flashy, but they are an essential part of any long-term behavioral health workforce retention strategies—especially as professionals age into new financial needs and life stages.
Attracting the Next Generation of Professionals
Beyond its benefits for current staff, the Escalator Program is also designed to attract new professionals to the field. With clear career pathways and financial supports, Landmark hopes to appeal to college graduates who might otherwise look elsewhere for stability. From student loan relief to cost-of-living pay increases, the program sends a strong message: behavioral health careers can offer both purpose and financial security.
When behavioral health organizations invest in their employees, they strengthen the entire system. That’s why behavioral health workforce retention strategies like those embedded in the Escalator Program could help redefine the industry’s future.
Landmark Recovery’s Reach and Impact
Landmark Recovery operates across multiple states—including Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin—with services spanning private insurance and self-pay models. The company also provides care for Medicaid patients in Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio.
Its diverse presence positions it as a leading force in the addiction treatment field—and one with the potential to influence broader industry standards. While no other provider is currently offering a program quite like the Escalator Program, Boyle hopes others will follow suit.
“I welcome other competitors doing something similar, because it’s good for the workers,” he said. “If it starts to become more of a norm, it just starts to attract more talent to get into this industry, which can only be a good thing for us.”
If adopted more widely, behavioral health workforce retention strategies like those seen at Landmark could significantly improve provider availability and reduce the barriers patients face when seeking care.
A Blueprint for Industry-Wide Change
With provider shortages threatening the delivery of critical behavioral health services, Landmark’s Escalator Program may be the kind of bold, innovative thinking the industry needs. By combining fair wages, long-term financial supports, and a transparent career trajectory, the program addresses the root causes of turnover while inviting new talent to join the field.
Whether it becomes an industry-wide model remains to be seen. But Landmark’s efforts highlight a fundamental truth: that in order to care for others, we must first care for the caregivers. And that starts with giving them not only a paycheck—but a future.
As the conversation around workforce development continues, it’s programs like this that will lead the way in shaping practical, employee-centered behavioral health workforce retention strategies that ensure better care, stronger teams, and healthier communities.
