In today’s economy, many companies are struggling to find the right employees to fill their needs. Warehouse workers are currently in high demand, and the tight labor market is making it difficult to not only find but also retain candidates. With a high turnover rate for workers, businesses need to adapt to find ways to keep their employees while at the same time drawing in new ones. As a result, many businesses are forced to pay higher wages, offer better benefits, and provide more training to compete for the limited pool of talent. “Competition for talent at the entry level is significant right now,” said Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management. “I’m not sure there’s one silver bullet. You’ve got to give [workers] something more than just pay.”

That leaves us with the question of what enticements are companies offering to potential new employees? Let’s look at 5 things.

1. More growth within the company. It is essential to teach new skills to employees so that they can grow and transition into better roles at the same company. The knowledge that they have a chance for professional growth could entice more workers into the struggling industry. 
2. Technology. This key element opens up the warehouse industry to a wider variety of people including disabled workers or older ones. Despite the common misconception that warehouses are stuck in the past, a large variety of warehouses are now very technologically advanced. This makes the work more widely available to a more diverse group of potential employees.  With the aid of things like remote operated forklifts, more can reach out for warehouse work than in the past.
3. Better management.  This is often an essential element that many companies overlook.  Management needs to ask; how can we keep current employees happy? How can we have better communication with employees and find out their needs? Are we regularly asking our employees what will keep them at their current post for longer? When these questions are asked and the responses are put into practice, companies will have a better shot at keeping employees happy and hopefully retaining them.
4. Increasing public awareness of the warehouse industry. Warehouse workers are part of the backbone of the American economy, yet they are often invisible to the public. Their jobs are essential to the smooth functioning of our society. Yet, despite their importance, warehouse workers are often taken for granted. Therefore, it is important to increase public awareness of the warehouse industry as a career. By showcasing the hard work and dedication of these men and women, we can help to change the perception of this vital profession. In doing so, we can ensure that warehouse workers receive the recognition and respect that they deserve and more will be drawn to the industry.
5. Money! We certainly cannot overlook the most obvious aspect of how to attract new employees. Offering more competitive pay is of course the first thing that would pop into most worker’s minds. Everyone needs a fair wage and as the economy is often so uncertain, all need the added benefit of better pay.

Ultimately, only by addressing these issues head on will companies be able to find and keep the workers the warehouse industry so desperately needs.  

Photo and list the photo credit: 

1. pexels.com / Elevate
2. pexels.com / Tiger Lily
3. pexels.com / Tiger Lily

Source material: https://bit.ly/3RUUHBl