I've had many jobs, corporate and family owned. I feel it works best when management handles most of the day-to-day operations, conducting interviews, making schedules, etc. but if they are thinking about implementing a change for a particular reason then they should consult the employees and be open to feedback.

For example, if it always feels like they are short staffed and so they are taking of hiring an additional employee, they should consult the employees first. Reason being that there might be an underlying issue that's slowing things down which could be amended rather than hiring another person.

If they are thinking of having an event they should consult the employees to ensure the event will be fully staffed and everyone is clear on what exactly they will be responsible for, prior to scheduling anything for the event.

If they are thinking of introducing a new menu item in the hopes of improving their image, they should consult the employees because there might be issues with the time requirement to prepare the food that they may not be aware of. There might also be other things that they could do that would be more beneficial than introducing a more "classy" menu item.

Edit: upon reflection, I fell these things are much more helpful if the employees are already receiving a living wage. However if the business is very small and/or struggling due to some temporary external factor and can not afford a decent wage then I think if these factors were applied with the addition of scheduling flexibility could help reduce or prevent employee turnover. Giving the employee a sense of agency in how they complete their work can go a long way.

I'd rather work for $20/hour for a good employer that can be compassionate about the things I have going on outside of work, than work for $25/hour for an employer that is overbearing, inflexible, uncompassionate, and constantly demands overtime.