Shortage of workers .

[fastfredracing]

I hear it everywhere I go. No one can find employees. Shops, roofers, auto parts stores, retail, truck drivers etc..... Especially in the trades .
What gives ? Maybe it's time that these companies pony up, and pay a decent wage.
Seems to me that anyone who can pass a drug test, and show up to work 5 days in a row repeatably, and do a reasonably good job is a rare, and valuable commodity in today's world .
Advance auto parts has been short staffed for a year now. To the point , where I have been calling other parts stores just because they are so much faster .
The store manager told me they took 1000 online applications, and out of that 1000, 3 were potential employees. One failed the drug test, 1 declined the job, the other took the job and never showed .
What are we doing wrong , that we cannot fill these jobs, yet have so much unemployment.?

[javadog]

We have a huge number of people that are incapable of being productive in the workforce.

[masraum]

Retail jobs are horrible soul sucking jobs. I've had them before. I'm guessing that a lot of the trade jobs also suck. I'm sure part of the reason that they don't pay much (besides wanting a bigger bottom line) is that the help they get sucks and doesn't contribute much to the bottom line, at least, not initially, if they last. Then the people that are good workers (which are few and far between), probably leave to try to find greener pastures.

I haven't been in that environment for a looooong time, but I suspect things haven't changed much, especially now that millennials are in the job market.

[ckelly78z]

Lots of snowflakes out there living in thier parents basements who would rather make viral YouTube videos/Facebook Memes, or be a professional gamer. Actually getting up/dressed, and out the door in the morning doesn't align with thier beliefs, and desires. If these kids never get kicked in the azz, and have to take responsabilty for a mortgage/family/automobiles like adults tend top do, they will never "launch".

Way too many addictions drive these people to desparation, and taking a resposible job, and being sober doesn't agree with them.

Look at the lengths that some corporations have had to resort to to attract/keep millenials.

[Wetwork]

To go along with that, I've noticed for years now the hardest working, dependable employee's often fall into that cycle of being the "go to" for problems with no rewards. So they have to pick up the messes, and get lot of extra pressure, called at all hours to run in and help, for zero incentive. The lazy, squeaky wheels are left alone and the great workers picked up the slack. Watched it crush my little brother in the IT world. -WW

[bleucamaro]

Yup. My company is also having a hard time finding people, and we're on a hiring streak. We are an aerospace structures contract manufacturer, and looking for low to medium skilled labor, and QA support. Over 70% of the people we have made offers to can't pass a drug test. These are people who've gone through and HR screening, and management interview. We've also had several accept an offer, then never show up.

In my company's case, I don't think we pay enough. You can get a job at starbucks or amazon with better pay and benefits.

[1990C4S]

There is no shortage of workers. There is a shortage of pay.

Jobs that go unfilled don't pay enough to attract workers.

[MBAtarga]

Keep in mind there will likely never be 0% unemployment. Many are on the government payroll and no matter what will NEVER work.

[daepp]

The construction trades in SO Cal are practically begging for more workers. A guy with a few years under his belt can make a solid, middle class living if he just shows up and does a good day's work. I will say it is hard work, and like it was said up above, most 18-30 year olds just want a cush job from the get go. They'd rather not work, or work from home, or work inside with A/C - than get out and learn a trade.

Seriously not meant to PARF this up, but my suspicion is that it's just way too easy not to have to work these days. I think the social safety net is allowing too many able-bodied males not to have to go and find meaningful work; what they get from the county et al. is enough for them to survive - barely - so why go out and learn a trade?

The (untrained) psychologist in me thinks this leads to some very unhappy/depressed/bitter guys. And I can only speak for (some) dudes, but most I know need a real purpose to stay mentally healthy, and they find that usually in completing their work. I don't think you can find your purpose in your parents' basement, or working at 7-Eleven etc.

[Danimal16]

When I worked in retail many DECADES ago, you could make great money. We were commissioned sales. Part time, full benefits (yep that is long gone) and when you got to work you hustled, build a client base, knew your produce that after about 3 months, you would just keep your customers happy (the days of customer Rolodexes). That was way before the big box stores and online crushed the hell out of commissioned sales.

You had to know your product, you had to know the trends, you had to know the competition and most of all you had to develop a customer network and take care of those customers. Great work, put me through college. Now, I haven't a clue if commissioned sales in retail even exist anymore.

[Tervuren]

I would not say it is any one particular thing.

What I see is a lot of folks that missed out on obtaining discipline, morality, and problem solving skills. The three kinda intertwine, morals are about how what you do affects others, and making decisions based on that. It requires discipline and problem solving skills to make sound moral decisions and carry them out.

The lack of these three make for a large amount that can't be hired for many jobs that require them.

Another part is I notice a lot of folks(and not just young folks) begrudge their employer a profit. They look at what they do for the company(and often do not value expenses of the company enough), and offset this from what they get paid. Then they laze down to that level.

No profit, why hire? Negative balance because they don't value your costs enough? They can't work anywhere.

A young person that understands they are hired to make a profit for their employer, which is to some extent a moral standpoint where they look out for someone else's interest in addition to themselves.

There is certainly work to be done.

Some neighborhoods in a 100 mile radius, all the stores and places have good young folks working.

Others, I just avoid those stores or places, bad quality from everyone. Often it is the areas with recent expensive housing put in that have the worst employees.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by fastfredracing

I hear it everywhere I go. No one can find employees. Shops, roofers, auto parts stores, retail, truck drivers etc..... Especially in the trades .
What gives ? Maybe it's time that these companies pony up, and pay a decent wage.
Seems to me that anyone who can pass a drug test, and show up to work 5 days in a row repeatably, and do a reasonably good job is a rare, and valuable commodity in today's world.

Wages don't make the worker. Paying more isn't going to bring more dedicated, responsible workers into the work force. If you are content to sit on your ass now, offering more money isn't going to turn you into a good worker. Paying more might help keep people you have, but it isn't going to increase the pool of good workers.

[IROC]

Originally Posted by fastfredracing

Seems to me that anyone who can pass a drug test, and show up to work 5 days in a row repeatably, and do a reasonably good job is a rare, and valuable commodity in today's world .

That's the problem. Not many can pass a drug test. NPR had a story on this a while back. Some manufacturing company was looking to expand (I think this was in Ohio) and couldn't because they couldn't find enough workers who could pass a drug test.

My F-I-L is having the same problem right now. He is the manager of a GMC dealership and is TRYING to hire people for all positions. Can't do it. Nobody can pass a drug test. My M-I-L used to be the manager of a restaurant (for decades up until about 8 years ago). She said the same thing - either they couldn't pass a drug test or they would get hired, make just enough money to pay the rent and then she'd never see them again. Horrible.

[Mad Max]

Originally Posted by 1990C4S

There is no shortage of workers. There is a shortage of pay.

Jobs that go unfilled don't pay enough to attract workers.

I worked for Advance Auto Parts (AAP) and I can say that pay is one of the biggest problems, followed closely by, stupid company policies. No incentive to be a good employee and then the merger with Carquest caused having to use, no less than, three computer programs to find parts. Then parts, that were not available, are available to our competitors. Ask for a simple solution to a problem and the request is never entertained. The box is alive and well at AAP that thinking outside is not considered.

Just another poorly run corporation that no one really wants to work for. Sad.

[Tervuren]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

Wages don't make the worker. Paying more isn't going to bring more dedicated, responsible workers into the work force. If you are content to sit on your ass now, offering more money isn't going to turn you into a good worker. Paying more might help keep people you have, but it isn't going to increase the pool of good workers.

Hiring, I might agree, a starting wage is a starting wage. Do well and you move up from there.

As the economy is in a move up right now I am seeing a shift of folks moving for better offers, wages are important to keeping a work force.

Those already in the work force are certainly in a position to get higher wages right now, and if your job can't afford those higher wages there will be those that move.

[Tervuren]

Originally Posted by Mad Max

I worked for Advance Auto Parts (AAP) and I can say that pay is one of the biggest problems, followed closely by, stupid company policies. No incentive to be a good employee and then the merger with Carquest caused having to use, no less than, three computer programs to find parts. Then parts, that were not available, are available to our competitors. Ask for a simple solution to a problem and the request is never entertained. The box is alive and well at AAP that thinking outside is not considered.

Just another poorly run corporation that no one really wants to work for. Sad.

Around here, there are two bad AAP and one good AAP that I have visited.

The good one the workers are retired age that enjoy doing what they do.

The bad ones have managers that are in their late 30's employers that act like young teenagers but are probably in their 20's somewhere.

It is my observation that in an environment like what you describe everyone drops to the lowest level of anyone there.

All it takes is one bad hire that doesn't get fired quickly or straightened out quickly, and the place goes to lower she'ol.

[vash]

i thought the compensation was pretty good? i think it is pretty good here in CA.

the laborer gets almost $40 per hour with the prevailing wage.. i think. with fridge benefits.

[VincentVega]

I've talked to some folks looking for a home run and not interested in a 'boring, low paying job'. Considering they were low to mid skilled its not hard to see where they are coming from to a point. Work outside or behind a counter for ~$9/hr isnt that interesting. These folks thought they were worth more than that but didnt seem to understand how to prove that and earn more.

I asked what # was right and they said $20-25/hr. Sure, reality check is in order. But, I wonder what the right # is. Starting at $12, $15 or $20 is great but where do you go from there? How is that extra expense accounted for by the employer?

[Zeke]

What type of drug test is the problem here? If a potential employee can't pass a marijuana test is that a problem? The stuff stays in your system a long time. I don't smoke pot but I have worked with and hired many that do. They don't light up on the job and I don't see many that are high while working. To me, that's fine.

I'm still in construction, all home improvement and repair. No building anymore. When I'm out on a job the there are others present, it's 100% Hispanic. There's your workforce today in SoCal and there doesn't seem to that short of a supply.

However, if you're talking about a job that requires communication in English, well that's a problem.

[1990C4S]

We dropped our drug testing. Show up clean and sober or get fired.

Why should the company care if you smoke weed on weekends?