As you draw up your game plan for addressing labor shortages, consider strategies that have worked for small- and medium-sized businesses or other waste and recycling businesses. Which of these strategies are you already doing? Which ones should you try out?
1. Start with table stakes: Competitive pay and benefits.
Study surveys of your local market, review job postings to establish benchmarks, and analyze win/loss factors in recruiting. The insights you gain can help you tailor attractive offers that fall within market norms and are adjusted for the industry’s distinct challenges. Weigh the advantages and disadvantages of offering benefits like:
- Signing and retention bonuses
- Individual bonuses with goals for additional compensation
- Profit sharing tied to company performance
- Executive deferred compensation plans for leaders and key employees
- Health and dental insurance options
- Wellness programs and health club memberships
- Life and disability insurance coverage
- Paid time off that increases over time
- 401K plans and other retirements benefits, including company matching funds
Think about your target audience as you craft compensation packages. If you’re recruiting talent that views a job as a two-year commitment rather than a lifetime relationship, you might focus more on health and lifestyle benefits than on retirement programs.
2. Message your company’s purpose and unique culture.
Today’s workers prefer a job that’s meaningful, so they feel they have a role in making the world a better place. Emphasize the civic contributions of the industry—managing waste plays a critical societal role, and recycling provides vital inputs to numerous other industries.
Frame your company’s commitment to purpose and its distinctive culture in your messaging. This will attract new employees, and help existing employees identify more strongly with the business and its goals. Communicate your commitment to:
- Local and global communities
- Customers
- Company staff
- Environmental and sustainability goals
You may find that image and branding are as important for recruitment as they are for attracting new customers.
3. Focus on work environment.
Keep safety first and foremost in operations. Maintain equipment in good working order to serve safety goals and boost productivity levels. When it’s time to replace aging fleets and equipment, factor in the impact those investments will have on creating an attractive work environment for staff. Advanced technologies and automation make job functions easier, safer, and more efficient—they also help retain talent.
Safer, faster, and easier hold appeal when it comes to getting paid, especially for a workforce trained in the gig economy that’s come to expect faster payments for work performed. Offer online payroll and direct deposit, with ACH, Same Day ACH—or Real-Time Payments (RTP®) for contractors.
4. Prioritize employee growth and development.
Provide ongoing training and education to help employees build skills and offer mentoring relationships to support professional development. Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) training, certification programs, and tuition reimbursement show you’re serious about investing in the growth of your people.
It’s also important to provide advancement opportunities. Design rewarding job paths that include multiple options for production and field workers to move into non-production roles. With experience in the field, these employees could be valuable players in areas like:
- Customer service
- Billing
- Sales and new contract development
- Quality control
- Supervisory, training, coaching, and mentorship positions