Tips to Retain Skilled Warehouse Staff and Lower Turnover

Improve Productivity of Your Order Pickers
Skilled Workers Help Your Operation with Improved Efficiency

No matter how state-of-the-art your warehouse equipment is, your business won’t be successful without skilled workers to operate it. Growing competition for a shrinking pool of qualified labor makes today’s workforce more fluid than ever before.

High turnover has a negative impact on productivity and profitability. Here are some strategic ways to attract and retain high-quality warehouse staff members.

Offer Good Benefits and Working Conditions

Everyone works for a paycheck, but money is not the only factor candidates look for in a desirable job. Experts cite unhappiness with company culture and limited career paths as major reasons why workers change jobs.

In addition to salary, consider these benefits when creating an employment package:

– Incentives such as bonuses, paid time off and off-site team-building activities

– Healthcare insurance

– Access to training and education

– Well-defined career options

Make Jobs More Attractive to Younger Candidates

As the workforce ages, the millennial generation has been reluctant to fill in the gap. Invite schools to visit your warehouse and learn more about the advantages of a career in supply chains and logistics. You can also set up apprenticeships or internships for local students.

Be Flexible with Working Hours

Traditional shifts are difficult to manage, especially since many companies now operate around-the-clock. An annualized hours model keeps payroll consistent while staffing is flexible to accommodate fluctuations in activity.

Analyze, then Train

Training is required for new employees, new warehouse equipment and new technology. Carefully assess your needs to ensure that the right people are trained for the right jobs.

DJ Products: Tomorrow’s Warehouse Equipment Today

Our tugs, movers, pushers and other electric warehouse equipment incorporate the latest innovations in technology and safety. Call 800.686.2651 to find the perfect solution for your specific applications.

When Amazon Moves In, Warehouse Workers’ Pay Lags

Pay is a Crucial Combination
Pay is a Crucial Combination of Competitiveness.

It turns out, your warehouse equipment isn’t the only thing doing a lot of work for very little cost. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data shows a direct link between the introduction of an Amazon distribution center in Lexington County, SC, and a massive decline in annual earnings for warehouse workers.

Annual Earnings Fallen Over 30%

Since Amazon opened its Lexington distribution center in 2010, earnings for warehouse workers have dropped a staggering 30+%, falling from $47,000 to $32,000 annually. And Lexington’s warehouse workers are not alone…

Where Amazon Operates, Wages Decline

Other areas where the online retail giant has opened warehouses have likewise seen wages decline. In Chesterfield, VA, warehouse workers in the region have watched wages diminish 17%. In Tracy, CA, they have fallen 16%.

In areas where Amazon has opened distribution centers, government data shows warehouse workers’ wages fall an average of 3%, with workers in regions where Amazon operates earning around 10% less than warehouse workers employed elsewhere ($41,000 vs. $45,000/annually). Amazon operates over 75 fulfillment and 35 sorting centers across the U.S., employing 125,000+ full-time workers.

What’s Going on Behind-the-Scenes?

‘Stowers’ stock, ‘pickers’ pull items from shelves, and ‘packers’ box items. Constantly in-motion and monitored by devices that track performance, a single picker could collect 1,000-items and walk 15-miles in a shift. So why the dearth of pay?

Researchers point to a number of possible reasons:

– Warehouses erected in areas ‘left behind.’

– Areas have high labor-market concentration.

– Amazon is a major employer, outshining competition.

– A younger workforce. (Census data shows about half are <35.)

– Unskilled workers with minimal qualifications.

– Short job tenure, typically under 1-year.

– Better full-time benefits (health care, retirement savings, company shares).

Lagging behind? Lighten your load with warehouse equipment from DJ Products today.