Hiring Guidelines During a Skilled Labor Shortage
Hiring Do’s & Don’ts During a Skilled Labor Shortage
Twenty years ago the economy was in good shape, the manufacturing industry was booming and the unemployment rate was closer to 5 percent than 10 percent. This is something that cannot be said in today’s world. And unfortunately, it doesn’t look like there are going to be any drastic changes in the near future. A major skilled labor shortage exists within the manufacturing environment and it is only going to get worse before it gets better. There is a severe lack of educational resources available for individuals who want to get involved in manufacturing. In many high schools, the shop classes have been eliminated from the curriculum. In addition to that, the baby boomers are retiring at a rate of over 10,000 per day — creating an even larger skills gap.
With the current state of manufacturing employment, employers are constantly looking for new ways to lure talent. Job boards, social media advertising, job aggregators and traditional employment agencies have all become staples in the human resource diet. There have even been technological advances in which job boards incorporate video interviewing such as websites like CNCJobs.Net. Corporate recruiters and hiring managers use a variety of resources, but we still hear consistent complaints of dwindling sales teams and horror stories of machines sitting idle.
I have been entrenched in the employment industry since the economic meltdown of 2009; specifically manufacturing employment. What I have found is that there is indeed a skilled labor shortage and that we need to be proactive on that issue. With that said however, the problem should not be the employers’ biggest concern. Their biggest concern should be hiring managers’ onboarding new talent. Just because your HR department or Hiring Manager exposes jobs through the many avenues that exist, does not necessarily mean that the position will get filled any faster.
Take a look at some general guidelines that I have compiled which will help you fill your current vacancies during this skilled labor shortage.
1.) Once You Have Found a Suitable Candidate, Make a Job Offer In A Timely Fashion
In the manufacturing world, the day a candidate becomes available they are inundated by headhunters and job opportunities. By the time a resume gets on your desk the job seeker will have on average of two to three interviews lined up already. If that candidate does in fact make it to your interview and you feel they are a viable candidate, it is essential that you make a job offer in a timely fashion. If a job offer is not extended either on the spot or within 24 hours, you might as well consider the entire process a complete waste of company time and money.
2.) If You’re Working With A Recruiter Communication Is Key
Recruiters are an essential tool during a skilled labor shortage because they will save you time and effort. The best part of working with a recruiter is that they often times will get to work on your job orders without any type of retainer or contingency agreement. This means that you do not have any out of pocket expenses until you hire their candidate which often comes with a 90 day guarantee of employment.
When working with a recruiter, don’t be fooled into thinking that just because you have a signed agreement they will not also work for a direct competitor. For this reason it is essential that you give your recruiter prompt feedback because their business are placements and moving quickly is key. In addition, many recruiters will multi-market candidates so once a candidate is presented to you, you are working against the clock. This goes hand in hand with the first bullet point.
3.) When Utilizing Job Boards, Try The Niche Job Boards First
We’ve all been there filtering through thousands of resumes, some qualified while the majority are not. This is extremely common amongst the monster sized job boards. Once you post a position, your job becomes diluted and mixed with every industry out there. It’s best to go with a Niche Job Board first because the majority of candidates coming to those websites are from your industry. It doesn’t matter if you’re a legal firm or involved in retail. Doesn’t it makes sense to post a position on lawjobs.com if you’re seeking an attorney? Just remember… Bigger does not always mean better.
4.) Unless A Critical Skillset Is Necessary, Consider Ambition Over Experience.
It is quite obvious to state that during a skilled labor shortage there are far fewer “plug and play” candidates on the market today. If it isn’t absolutely necessary to have a specific skillset, consider an applicant’s ambition to learn over their past experiences. As I mentioned previously, there are very limited educational resources for people that want to get involved in the skilled trades. Consider an on-site training program or upgrade training at your facility. This is a win-win for all involved because the employee advances their skillset and you as the employer can justify a lower initial offer. You can then increase their wages contingent upon completion of your program. This gives you the ability to mold an employee to fit the exact criteria in which you were originally seeking. Also, having a training program is a great tax right off so there’s always that.
The fact of the matter is that today’s employment industry is more like playing a chess game rather than fishing from a stocked pond. Candidates are being shuffled around from point A to point B and being removed from the board at a rapid rate. Dragging your feet in the employment process is a costly mistake that both you and your company cannot afford. Each day that your machines run idle, production will take a major hit. Fewer products means fewer sales, fewer sales leads to company demise and company demise means you’re out of a job. So let’s pick up the pace a little bit and make things happen. Although it may just be a Band-Aid for now, it’s worthy of consideration.
By: Blake Lawson
COO — President CNCJobs.Net
Originally published at cncjobs.net.
