It’s no secret the warehousing industry is struggling to attract and retain their workforce. Despite the numerous attempts to combat it, levels of attrition continue to be an issue. But why has staff retention become such an uphill battle in recent years and what can warehouse operators do to reduce the trend?
Warehouse Distribution Specialist
Lydia Parsons, Warehouse Distribution Specialist for Lucas Systems speaks to Warehouse and Logistics News
The best way to attract workers is paying them more, right?
Warehouse workers are generally paid higher than other service industry jobs. Despite this, turnover rate is still high. It’s easy to assume the reason for an employee to leave would be due to a dispute over pay, however, according to a study by Lucas Systems, 3 in 4 employees who quit could have been retained in jobs where measures could have been made to improve their worker experience. Looking in a general sense, people leave their jobs for issues such as lack of fulfilment, workplace culture, poor relationships with their management team, and lack of flexibility- to name a few.
In warehousing, managers have to deal with these issues as well as a plethora of industry-specific issues that are common across sites. As we know, warehouse workers are expected to lift heavy loads in repetitive motions, which eventually will become physically taxing. According to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the serious injury rate of warehouse workers in 2021 was 3.3 per 100 workers. This trajectory is only expected to heighten as demand continues to increase, particularly when trying to keep up with continually-compressed customer turnaround expectations.
Another warehouse-specific issue is difficulty in finding space to complete the job properly. Warehouses are often exacerbated by continuous stock moving in and out of the site, with new SKU’s being added to systems on a regular basis. But the warehouse walls aren’t necessarily expanding with the demand. Warehouse workers have reported more cramped conditions, with difficulty in finding available stow bins and totes to complete the pick. This lack of resources makes it increasingly difficult to complete the task at hand, which of course will impact their engagement at work and a decreased image of self if they are unable to fulfil their productivity.
So what can specific measures can be taken to attract and retain employees?
For hourly workers, it’s useful to offer a level of predictability in their work life. Providing shift rotas two weeks in advance allows people the time to plan activities outside of the workplace with friends and family. Individual workers would be more inclined to stay in employment at a company who’s prepared to be flexible and accommodating to their staff’s requirements outside of their work life.
Empathy is an extremely attractive quality for employees; external stressors are much more manageable with an employer who understands.
In warehousing specifically, there is one massive area that can significantly contribute to the employee experience: technology.
Implementing technology in to warehouse operations massively benefits every employee within the warehouse: administrative processes are streamlined; managers can focus more of their time on the floor supervising their teams and training their new staff; pickers are able to perform more efficiently and complete their tasks in a timelier manner.
In fact, technology is more valued in a warehouse environment than an individual outside of the world of supply chain might imagine. As younger generations are introduced to the workforce, it’s crucial for employers to stay ahead of the game to compete in an environment with such high demand and such a reduced pool of potential workers. In the Voice of the Warehouse Worker study, some surprising data was found regarding warehouse worker’s attitudes towards implementing technology into their occupation. 74% of workers are willing to take a pay cut to work at another company with more technology tools to help them perform and complete their daily work tasks. Implementing more sophisticated technology helps to trigger a more positive work-life integration as it helps to alleviate the strains of a more manual facility and provide a more flexible and attractive environment for on-floor workers. In our study, workers had very specific ideas of tools their companies need to implement, beginning with data capture and scanning tools (63%), conveyor systems (48%), and voice-directed tools with headsets (46%).
What were workers feelings on working with robots?
When it comes to adding robots to the cohort, on-floor workers have some surprisingly positive attitudes. Workers value robots as colleagues, and trust in their configurations to help with the high number of tasks in the warehouse, as well as to help reduce the physical and mental strain and perform to a higher standard. In fact, 90% of on-floor workers believe that implementing configurable technology is key to attracting and retaining employees. In addition, technology makes the job more exciting for a younger workforce; it shows dedication to personal development in a role and aligns with the new wave of relaxed attitudes towards work compared to the years that came before.
Of course, despite its relatively short ROI, technology is an expensive investment with a high initial cost and frequent maintenance areas which may be difficult for smaller warehouses or independent businesses who have limited funding. Whilst there are ways to get around this by spreading the cost to a monthly SaaS subscription, it’s not always a viable option for small companies.
What are some other general strategies beyond automation?
Some businesses have relatively limited resources to prevent their employees from quitting and are often forced to make difficult operational and employee-based decisions that don’t always include more money. As well as offering monetary incentives and improving the flexibility in scheduling shifts, employers can:
•Provide clear opportunities for progression.
•Offer chances to develop industry-related skills to help retain them in the industry.
•Afford additional time off to spend with their family.
To reiterate, retention is not always about how little or how much money someone is paid. Some franchise businesses have had the ability to make innovative scheduling decisions which, on paper, looks pretty flawed for business productivity, but really great for the employee. One branch of the American fast food chain restaurant “Chick-Fil-A” in Miami has implemented a three-day work week as an effort to retain and recruit employees. And it’s working. Between January 2022 and October 2022 employee retention was 100%, and people are flooding to fill open positions. Knowing their structures for the weeks, months and even years to come for those on the three-day work week programme aids in relieving stress surrounding academic studies, taking care of dependants, and maintaining a social life. If the highest percentage possible of employee retention is an indicator of anything, it’s that this staff management approach is highly effective and employee satisfaction is high.
Lucas Systems
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