new truck cost!!

transamz9 wrote:

FishOnOne wrote:

transamz9 wrote:

FishOnOne wrote:

transamz9 wrote:
They have to go somewhere to actually find skilled labor. That's they problem here in the states. We have been pushing so hard for many many years to keep our kids in school and telling them if you stay in school and get a good education then you will get a good paying job and be the boss. Well the problem with that is that not everyone can be the boss and not every one can start out with 6 figure incomes. The people in the states don't want to start out on the bottom and work their way up. They want to start out on top. Now we have people with degrees and nothing to use them for and the others just refuse to learn so they live on Obama.

What ever happened to starting out breaking your back, learning how to actually do the work and working your way up? It's gone. We have raised all Chiefs and no Indians so the companies have to go to places where there are Indians that their Chiefs can actually get some quality work out of and not have to pay them Chief wages.

We have plenty of skilled labor and labor to start at the bottom and work their way up. What these people need is the opportunity!

I see it every day...I know... I'm a manufacturing manager and I have ~300 employees in my department. I have Manufacturing Engineers, Equipment/Maintenance Techs, Test Techs, Precision Parts Assemblers, Solders, Machine Operators, QA Inspectors, Documentation Control, Full Time Regulars to Temps. A lot of these people started as a temp and worked there way to a full time position because of their hard work and dedication. Some even became techs, solders, QA's etc with internal training... and even on to other promoted positions. I even promoted a production person that started as a temp in '10 to now a Group Lead this year. I see these highly skilled people evolve and take ownership and pride in the department we work in. They maintain a Lean 5S score of 5 each and every month, ISO audits always come back impressed all because these people had an opportunity and made it happen.

We're not talking about BIL's , Uncles and friends of friends. How many temps have you gone through to get those 300 people? That's our problem in the construction world. We will go though 25 people before we will find one that is actually willing to learn and have enough common sense to be taught something. I'm not talking about putting a part in a press and pushing a button either. Repetitive work is one thing, actually knowing how to do something is a whole other game.

Perhaps you should stop hiring friends and family!

That's my point. The friends and family of the people that work here are the good ones. We use Temp to hire places when we have a project that requires more skilled labor than what we have on our payroll. We ask for specific skilled labor (concrete finishers,iron workers, carpenters and so on). and will go through 25 or so before we will actually get one that is skilled. Ninety percent of the time we will hire them full time on our payroll when we find one.

We created a basic written test and a safety test that helps the screening process for the temporary agency to perform. Also the temp agency makes their employee aware of the work schedule, the type of work, and that we are critical that they follow work instructions to the "T". The candidate/s are either interviewed by my supervisor or myself. Once the temp is brought on, I have Cell Leads that go over the work instructions, demonstrate the process and then work with the temp until they demonstrate they can perform the job. My supervisor, ME's and myself are always on the shop floor and all the employees are encouraged to ask questions and don't ever make assumptions. We also recognize employees who find quality issues with supplier parts in order to promote a quality culture.

We also perform Kaizens were a team of employees will work on a project to make improvements to the shop weather it be to improve a work cell, improve a tool design, reduce non value added waste...etc. We keep all employees involved in meeting our company goals and as a result they take full ownership in the department they work in and it's sets the example for the new employees to follow. We also have boundary owners who audit a certain area of the shop to ensure we maintain our 5S goals.

Bottom line is to get the employees involved, have the proper structure/organization, and show them on a regular basis there input is appreciated and that it matters and you'll build a strong team.


On the construction topic we are currently have an building expansion project in process, and the construction contractor has their act together. These guys got it together and are make major progress. Add to that there nothing but Super Duty's on site too! :W

BTW... Do I need to start sending you recruits! :B