Turning on the tap: What sprinklers can teach us about seasonal labour-hire
Australian Agriculture
If a wise man once said “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” he probably wasn’t talking about the seasonal labour-hire practices in the Australian agriculture industry.
➡️ See our short video explaining this article
If the system was not broken before, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is now. So where did things go so wrong, and more importantly, what is the solution?
In this article, we identify why the system is broken and propose a solution that will complement any existing hiring structure using the analogy of an irrigation system.
What has broken?
In short, the supply and distribution of seasonal labour is failing to meet the needs of Australian farmers and the agriculture industry for efficiency.
Supply
The Ag industry relies heavily on backpackers for seasonal labour. With COVID-19 restricting travel, there are fears that this workforce will be insufficient, leaving unpicked fruit and veg in the fields. Travel restrictions, visa cancellations, and widespread uncertainty is the reality facing employers.
By the end of 2020, approximately 25% of the backpackers working in Australian agriculture are forecast to have returned home without being replaced. That equates to approximately 8,000 people, or 16,000 fewer hands, handling and distributing Australia’s ripe produce.
The supply of backpackers is drying up.
Efficient distribution
In addition to the shortages on the supply side, the remaining backpackers in Australia can no longer travel freely and door knock in search of work.
Online job boards, forums, groups, listings, and pages are unable to efficiently distribute the waves of panicked job seekers looking to secure farm work in response to the pandemic.
COVID-19 has seen this bottle-neck intensify as businesses take necessary precautions, delaying the hiring of new workers. This has meant that when a position is posted, some primary-producers are being bombarded with hundreds of applications at once, with no way to filter or manage the flow of incoming applications.
Clearly the distribution of labour is far from efficient and the industry is suffering as a result.
So how do we fix it?
We can fix the problems with seasonable labour-hire by applying the principles used in irrigation, which solves the problem of how to transport water from its source to where it is most needed.
Irrigation analogy
A well-functioning irrigation system is a robust collection of working parts with a single purpose: to supply and efficiently distribute water from its source to where it is needed.
Although new sources of water may not always be available, the efficiency comes from being able to control when and how much water is moved, avoiding wastage.
The same principle applies to hiring seasonal workers. With a decreasing supply of seasonal labour, the fix can be found in a more efficient distribution of the available workforce to meet demand.
The fix
The fix is built on a new model for an efficient hiring system. This system must achieve the following for agribusiness:
- Give you access to employees with the right skills
- Have labour arrive on your farm at the right time
- Ensure you have as much labour as you need
Of course, any new model worth its salt must also be efficient, reliable and flexible to help farmers to deal with the current crisis, and thrive after it. So how does it work?
The fix has two parts:
- Integrate a ‘hiring period’ into your business; and
- Post your labour requirements months in advance.
1. Hiring period
The hiring period is the period of time it takes to find workers from the moment of receiving applications until day 0 of farm work.
The hiring period performs the role of ‘valve’, ‘filter’ and ‘distribution’ in an irrigation system, modulating the flow of applicants and filtering employees to where they need to go.
For example:
This hiring period can be modified by adding or removing processes and changing the estimated time to complete each process.
For example (see image):
If two weeks of self-isolation are required before beginning work you can extend your hiring period to accommodate this by setting ‘Hiring Opens’ to an earlier date.
The hiring period helps you decide when you should begin receiving and reviewing applicants (‘Hiring Opens’) to ensure workers are on your farm, with all steps completed, ready to start when you need them (‘Work Starts’).
2. Post positions months in advance
Posting positions months in advance is crucial. For a business, this step is equivalent to tapping into the water source, turning on the pump and filling up the water tank with applications.
Simply estimate the different work positions you need filled throughout the year and display them (up to 12 months in advance). Over time refine the position details within the context of your business needs and changing environment.
Keep in mind the hiring period you’ve set will determine the window you are open to receive applications from backpackers.
Backpackers will be able to view and save the upcoming work position on their calendar and apply once the hiring period opens, giving you a list of potential candidates from day one. And that’s it, the makings of a modern day hiring system.
With this fix, you can turn the tap on and off and move labour from its source to where you need it to go. Once in place, the system requires minimal input to be effective. It can easily be duplicated and altered with ease, saving you a lot of time.
The alternative is prospecting for a new water source each time you need workers with a worn-out bucket to move it. It is not impossible, but you’re left doing the heavy lifting with a tool not quite up for the task.
➡️ You can check out our short video explaining what has been discussed above
What next?
You may be wondering WHERE you can access this labour supply and post your positions in advance and HOW to control the flow of applicants.
See our video discussion on how you can easily implement this system into your business.
