Finding and keeping good workers willing to do physically demanding work can be a challenge today, but even more so in some areas of the country, such as the Southeast.
That means it’s more important than ever to hire the right workers up front, and to do your best to onboard them and provide them with enough support in the beginning to keep them around.
Hire the wrong person, or hire a good person and put them in an environment that makes them feel like they’ll never measure up, and within a few weeks, you’ll be advertising for the same position again.
Bill Wood, vice president of human resources for Kamps Pallets, said, “We have to do some pretty extensive recruiting to staff our facilities. We do quite a few job fairs. We might interview 20 people to get a few…maybe five that we recommend for hire.”
Kamps is in numerous markets, with 22 locations, and staffing challenges do vary by location, but on other factors as well.
“There’s no doubt that people aren’t just walking in the doors,” he said. “We are in the pallet business, and the work is very physically demanding.”
Oscar Covarrubias said he’s never seen the recruiting environment as bad as it is now. “I’ve never seen it like this before. It’s hard to get people. It’s hard to get general labor. Right now I have so many people that want workers, but can’t get enough good candidates.”
Covarrubias is the owner and president of Latin Labor Staffing, a firm based in Charlotte, North Carolina, that specializes in placing workers in
general labor positions, including construction, manufacturing, packaging, and warehouse jobs, in addition to other types of work.
About 60% of the company’s employees are Hispanic, but the firm works with employees of any race.
Covarrubias, who emigrated from Mexico in 1996 and did blue collar
work in Atlanta until he could afford to start his own business in 2005, knows the value of a hard day’s work. But
he believes that many people who could work, especially in the Southeast,
just aren’t willing to do it because they get too many benefits for free if they don’t work.
A recent article in Forbes magazine confirmed this citing welfare benefits as the main factor contributing to the labor shortage. The other four factors named in the article were lack of training in public schools, negative attitudes to blue collar work, a “cultural bias” that discourages older teens and young adults from working, and delayed entry into the workforce, sometimes into a person’s late 20s, caused by greater access to higher education.
“All these benefits they are getting. Why should they work for $10 hour when they can get food stamps…free cell phone…free medial…they are taking advantage of the system,” Covarrubias said.
When he does find a good worker, he said it’s hard to keep them, because the competition is stiff in the region with so many companies being short on labor. “I can put 2,000-3,000 people to work tomorrow if I didn’t have difficulty now finding people,” he said.
Finding a Good Match
According to both Wood and Covarrubias, it’s really important to find workers who really want to do manual labor and are physically able to perform the work when filling these types of positions.
“We place a pretty heavy emphasis on fitting our culture. During the interview process, we have certain questions that we ask to identify what their values are,” he said.
The company has had very good luck hiring workers who previously did manual labor, such as working on a farm or in a similar environment. It has also had good success hiring people who have been athletes.
“Many of the pallet companies pay piece rate and it’s bred in them to win and to work hard for what you want,” he said. The environment is competitive and those who enjoy that challenge and have a desire to win often excel in it. One thing the company does, which Wood said many other pallet companies do as well, is to post results for each pallet builder daily to encourage healthy competition and reward those who do well.
Onboarding is also very important, said Wood. “The highest turnover is going to be in that first 30 days. Getting them over that hump – that’s the challenge.”
“If you hire right and train them right, then you have a good shot at having a good employee,” he said.
The work is hard and the workers go home sore at the end of the day, especially if they’re new to it, so it’s important to set reasonable expectations in them right from the start, Wood explained.
If they are paired with someone who is running circles around them, they may get discouraged and think they can never reach that level so it’s important to let them know that it may take 4-6 weeks to get their speed up and to communicate that to them.
Safety is also crucial, he said. “We pair them with an experienced employee, and between their supervisor and the trained person, they will learn how to do the job correctly and safely.”
“One thing that’s nice about Kamps is that we have a very positive culture. People are treated with respect and integrity and valued, and I think that comes across in our culture,” Wood said.
Every employee doing manual labor is a valuable asset to the company, he said. “When it gets right down to it, you’re selling a product and making a product, but if you can’t make it then you can’t sell it.”
Getting Creative
While Latin Labor Staffing is facing challenges finding workers in the Southeast, Oscar Covarrubias has gotten creative to fill his clients’ openings by bringing workers from California. He is even planning to open a recruiting office in San Diego.
There are a lot of people out there who want to work, but can’t find jobs there, he said. And there are also a lot of people there who can’t make ends meet even if they do find jobs, because the cost of living is so high.
“Over here they get a little more money plus the cost of living is lower, gas is cheaper…,” he said.
Covarrubias has already brought about 30 people from the West Coast, and is working on lining up apartments for 20 more who are coming. “These people really want to work, he said. “And when you’re making a move, you are more invested in it.”
It’s a lot more work on his part, but his clients need workers, and he believes his investment will be worthwhile if the workers he’s bringing to the Southeast will work hard and stick with his company, as he expects they will.