In any business, it’s important to consider labor challenges and create strategies to anticipate company needs before issues arise. Without considering the seasonal labor fluctuations, potential future strike staffing issues, and other what-ifs, it’s easy to be caught off guard if or when something does happen. You might be wondering how to overcome warehousing labor challenges in the future, or maybe you’re trying to deal with an issue currently. Either way, we have solutions that have been effective for a variety of companies over the years.
Keep reading to explore the best strategies to keep your business moving regardless of warehousing labor changes.
Handle the Ebbs and Flows of Business
Throughout the course of a year, most warehouses go through ebbs and flows of production levels that go along with supply and demand. After a few years of owning your company, it gets easier to see a pattern and form predictions. With past demand stats in the back of your mind, it makes it easier to predict the extra workers you’ll need during certain seasons. If you don’t have a pattern set yet, enlisting a temporary staffing agency can be a huge help in getting your company up and running. Even once you do determine a pattern, it can be helpful to get a hand with seasonal hiring. During a busy season, the last thing you want to deal with is hiring new temp employees.
Find Temporary Workers Who Hit the Ground Running
The great thing about temporary hires is that they are skilled in the profession where they are placed. Investing in temp workers ensures you’re getting a variety of skills in your preferred field so your new hires hit the ground running. Staffing agencies typically have a database filled with applicable candidates for your needs — who are ready to integrate into your company at a moment’s notice. As a result, your transition to temp workers in times of strife is seamless and your production stays strong.
Cross-Train Employees for Greater Flexibility
Another great way to overcome warehouse labor challenges is to cross-train employees for greater flexibility, so they are able to switch over in a pinch. While this doesn’t solve workforce problems permanently, it’s a great option in the meantime until you’re able to hire seasonal or temp employees during strikes, high-demand periods and more. For cross-training to work, it helps to train employees in similar positions where you won’t feel a great loss in their own department if they have to switch over.
Another cross-training option is to train your employees to cover more than one position for a while. However, with this method, you don’t want to keep it up for long or you could easily cause your employees to suffer from burnout. On top of that, work quality is going to suffer until you’re able to allot duties more appropriately using new temp hires.
Prepare for Potential Labor Strikes
While labor strikes are so unpredictable, having a contingency plan in place in case the inevitable happens is crucial to keeping your warehousing going strong. Speaking with staffing specialists at Strom Engineering can help immensely in creating a strike staffing plan to enact in case a labor strike occurs. Having a plan makes the process go that much smoother.
Best case scenario, you’ll never have to touch that plan. But if a strike does happen, you’ll have a leg up over your competitors who may be caught off-guard.
Use a Temporary Staffing and Recruitment Agency
There are numerous solutions on how to overcome warehousing labor challenges, but the easiest, fastest option in a crisis situation is to use a temporary staffing and recruitment agency. With temp recruiters on your side, they’ll be the first to search for new hires when you need it most, and they’ll do everything possible to minimize downtime and keep your warehouse going strong.
Strom Engineering has decades of recruiting experience, a database filled with warehousing and engineering temp workers at our disposal and tons of industry knowledge that help us find your ideal candidate. Reach out for assistance creating an expert contingency plan or get temp workers today.
Strom Engineering is a national staffing and recruitment agency, with a particular focus on manufacturing, engineering, assembly, and other trade positions. We match skilled candidates to temporary or project staffing positions. Learn more about how it works and check out our case studies for more information.