Finding quality workers.

[BillBoard]

I sold my business and the new owners are reaping the benefits of all the work I did selling last year.

They are developing a nice back log of work and open orders, now they are asking me to help them find quality workers.

Unfortunately for them, there is no simple way to find quality help.

All the employees I had were found by a somewhat tedious process and probationary period, unfortunately they do not want to hear that.

Such is life.

[hoarder]

Hire 'em on contract. If they work out keep 'em. If they don't then vacate the position.
That's how it was when I worked offshore. We worked for a contract company anywhere from 3 months to 3 years depending on the job market before the oil company would hire you...provided you didn't get fired by then. If the company didn't like one of the hands the contract company sent they would just call them up and tell them to send another. It was very easy to fire people this way.
Then when you got hired by the oil company you were on a six month probabtionary period.

[chad]

i've long maintained that when it comes to employees, skill set is not as important as life set. you can teach intelligent + motivated people how to be this or that, within reason.

you can't teach people how to not show up late to work because they got drunk last night, not steal office supplies, not fuck around all day, not gossip, etc.

common sense life skills are what's most important. the rest can usually be taught, again, within reason.

[BillBoard]

None of those ways are speedy for finding quality help... right?

[BillBoard]

None of those ways are speedy for finding quality help... right?
If you would like Speedy why not just drive a pickup truck through Spanish Harlem? You'll have to beat them off with sticks.


But then they wouldn't be quality help, correct? ;D

The want speedy, I told them is not so speedy, something they didn't want to hear.

[hoarder]

People want workers to be fast, good and cheap. 30 years ago you could get two of the above, fast and cheap but not good, fast and good but not cheap, good and cheap but not fast.
Nowadays you're lucky to get ONE of the three.
50 years of teevee has finally taken it's toll.

[lapis]

People want workers to be fast, good and cheap. 30 years ago you could get two of the above, fast and cheap but not good, fast and good but not cheap, good and cheap but not fast.
Nowadays you're lucky to get ONE of the three.
50 years of teevee has finally taken it's toll.


I agree with you, but what do you think of this?

I work part-time for a large retail company, and they continue to hire young kids who are late to work, text friends on the job, and not show up for shifts.

[hoarder]

I agree with you, but what do you think of this?

I work part-time for a large retail company, and they continue to hire young kids who are late to work, text friends on the job, and not show up for shifts.
Maybe they're the only ones who apply.

[horseshoe3]

I agree with you, but what do you think of this?

I work part-time for a large retail company, and they continue to hire young kids who are late to work, text friends on the job, and not show up for shifts.


They obviously value cheap more than fast or good. Otherwise they would change their hiring practices.

[mightymanx]

I have said for years you can teach anything to an employee, but you can't teach work ethinc in the work place. That needed to be learned in the home at a young age.

Any wonder why all the jobs are overseas? They work harder period.

[hoarder]

I have said for years you can teach anything to an employee, but you can't teach work ethinc in the work place. That needed to be learned in the home at a young age.

Any wonder why all the jobs are overseas? They work harder period.
Period nothing. Americans USED to have a work ethic and made better products than anyone else in the world. Then along came teevee.

Look at the chart and you will see America's decline correlates precisely with the percentage of households having teevees.

[Twisted Titan]

I am getting close to graduating My electrical program and I have excellent rapport with the Teachers some of which are still working the feild.

They told me over and over the most important thing you can do to secure yourself employment is two things

Show up for class EVERY DAY
Be on time EVERY DAY.

All else is secondary.

This was later confirmed as one of teachers was talking with a contractor seeking Electrical Apprentices

First thing out his mouth was.......... Send me your students with the best attendance records....... those are the only ones we will CONSIDER interviewing.

He didnt give a shit about grades or how well you did on projects. All of that can be corrected provided that you are there.


Thankfully I listened and have 5 Perfect attendance awards under my belt ( 1 one to go).


Its true what they say Good help is truly hard to find

[Ponce]

That's what is going on with big factories where the jobs used to go from father to son......now that the factories are closed those jobs no longer exists and if the factories (by a miracle) were to open again they then would have to start from the ground up.

We have lost more than a few workers but rather a GENERATION of workers that in what is to come will be many generations of workers........

Woke up this morning to about seven or eight inches of snow and it is still snowing........very, very, very, weird weather year...........how about you?

First post of the day.................good morning to one and all.

[BillBoard]

I am getting close to graduating My electrical program and I have excellent rapport with the Teachers some of which are still working the feild.

They told me over and over the most important thing you can do to secure yourself employment is two things

Show up for class EVERY DAY
Be on time EVERY DAY.

All else is secondary.

This was later confirmed as one of teachers was talking with a contractor seeking Electrical Apprentices

First thing out his mouth was.......... Send me your students with the best attendance records....... those are the only ones we will CONSIDER interviewing.

He didnt give a shit about grades or how well you did on projects. All of that can be corrected provided that you are there.


Thankfully I listened and have 5 Perfect attendance awards under my belt ( 1 one to go).


Its true what they say Good help is truly hard to find



T, Great post. That is so correct, you must be ready and available to attend to the customer.

[Awoke]

There are probably some mexicans in your area that are having a hard time finding work. Try asking them?

[Ash_Williams]

Hiring sucks.

I try not to be involved in company hiring but when when the new person is going to be in my dept I don't have much choice.

College and university graduates these days can't think on their own, solve new problems, or even spell correctly.

Example: I can ask on an interview something like "if it's 2:03 PM now, how many minutes have elapsed since 7:57 AM yesterday" and 80% of applicants will get this wrong. They will leave it blank, or pull some crazy wrong answer out of their asses and not even bother to check it. And our applicants have degrees... most often Master's and sometimes PhDs.

The worst part is that it is only the few who are qualified and didn't make spelling mistakes on their resume that are invited to come in for an interview. 2/3 of the resumes are thrown out at the start for spelling mistakes because I won't have someone in my department that can't spell when it counts the most.

Last time I just hired someone from another department after sitting through dozens of interviews with morons and giving up on the whole process. I guess that won't work for you.

Quality workers already have jobs, so to hire some quick this company will have to find people already working in a similar field and offer them a better wage. Next time I will first interview those who are already employed, then move onto unemployed applicants if that fails.

[sirgonzo420]

Hiring sucks.

I try not to be involved in company hiring but when when the new person is going to be in my dept I don't have much choice.

College and university graduates these days can't think on their own, solve new problems, or even spell correctly.

Example: I can ask on an interview something like "if it's 2:03 PM now, how many minutes have elapsed since 7:57 AM yesterday" and 80% of applicants will get this wrong. They will leave it blank, or pull some crazy wrong answer out of their asses and not even bother to check it. And our applicants have degrees... most often Master's and sometimes PhDs.

The worst part is that it is only the few who are qualified and didn't make spelling mistakes on their resume that are invited to come in for an interview. 2/3 of the resumes are thrown out at the start for spelling mistakes because I won't have someone in my department that can't spell when it counts the most.

Last time I just hired someone from another department after sitting through dozens of interviews with morons and giving up on the whole process. I guess that won't work for you.

Quality workers already have jobs, so to hire some quick this company will have to find people already working in a similar field and offer them a better wage. Next time I will first interview those who are already employed, then move onto unemployed applicants if that fails.



1806 minutes.

I don't have any degrees (unless an honorary Doctorate of Divinity counts), but I'll admit it took me nearly 15-30 seconds to figure it out.

I'm not surprised that many don't even put in the slightest bit of effort though.

[MNeagle]

Hiring sucks.

I try not to be involved in company hiring but when when the new person is going to be in my dept I don't have much choice.

College and university graduates these days can't think on their own, solve new problems, or even spell correctly.

Example: I can ask on an interview something like "if it's 2:03 PM now, how many minutes have elapsed since 7:57 AM yesterday" and 80% of applicants will get this wrong. They will leave it blank, or pull some crazy wrong answer out of their asses and not even bother to check it. And our applicants have degrees... most often Master's and sometimes PhDs.

The worst part is that it is only the few who are qualified and didn't make spelling mistakes on their resume that are invited to come in for an interview. 2/3 of the resumes are thrown out at the start for spelling mistakes because I won't have someone in my department that can't spell when it counts the most.

Last time I just hired someone from another department after sitting through dozens of interviews with morons and giving up on the whole process. I guess that won't work for you.

Quality workers already have jobs, so to hire some quick this company will have to find people already working in a similar field and offer them a better wage. Next time I will first interview those who are already employed, then move onto unemployed applicants if that fails.


Hey, it's not just employees with poor spelling, it's BOSSES too! I can't begin to tell you the number of bosses I've worked for with the worst spelling imaginable. Grammar or sentence structure?? Good luck.

Math skills are terrible top/bottom in this country as well. Can they make change w/o a calculator?

Perhaps if you omit the "degree" necessary to apply to your workforce, your candidate choices will improve. Experience, hands-on education, real-world savvy people are assets anywhere.

[SLV^GLD]

Funny, I worked out 366 minutes as my answer.

6 hours and 6 minutes, right? 60 minutes to the hour.
60X6=360 +6 = 366.

I thought maybe sirgonzo420 was calculating for seconds to get his number but that would be more like 21960 seconds so I have no idea where gonz got his number. Was it a joke?

[SLV^GLD]

Funny, I worked out 366 minutes as my answer.

6 hours and 6 minutes, right? 60 minutes to the hour.
60X6=360 +6 = 366.

I thought maybe sirgonzo420 was calculating for seconds to get his number but that would be more like 21960 seconds so I have no idea where gonz got his number. Was it a joke?
And I see the trick was the keyword "yesterday". Which adds a full 24 hours to the calculation.
24X60=1440 plus 366 = 1806.

Gonzo gets the job. Good thing I have one.

[MNeagle]

I do have to mention though, I went to high school w/ a girl that couldn't spell her way out of box.

But, she had incredible skills in other areas. Started her own machining company, grew it & then sold it for a tidy profit. Retired & lives on the lake now.

So, book smarts doesn't always equate to $$ business smarts.

[Twisted Titan]

Funny, I worked out 366 minutes as my answer.

6 hours and 6 minutes, right? 60 minutes to the hour.
60X6=360 +6 = 366.

I thought maybe sirgonzo420 was calculating for seconds to get his number but that would be more like 21960 seconds so I have no idea where gonz got his number. Was it a joke?



I had to count using scratch paper ( making 4 sticks with a 5th one across).

But I did get the right answer.

I am not the fastest dog in the race.

But you always count in me for at least a bronze medal :)


T

[BillBoard]

The hiring process is a nightmare. No matter how you slice it, there is no simple way.

[vacuum]

Hiring sucks.

I try not to be involved in company hiring but when when the new person is going to be in my dept I don't have much choice.

College and university graduates these days can't think on their own, solve new problems, or even spell correctly.

Example: I can ask on an interview something like "if it's 2:03 PM now, how many minutes have elapsed since 7:57 AM yesterday" and 80% of applicants will get this wrong. They will leave it blank, or pull some crazy wrong answer out of their asses and not even bother to check it. And our applicants have degrees... most often Master's and sometimes PhDs.

The worst part is that it is only the few who are qualified and didn't make spelling mistakes on their resume that are invited to come in for an interview. 2/3 of the resumes are thrown out at the start for spelling mistakes because I won't have someone in my department that can't spell when it counts the most.

Last time I just hired someone from another department after sitting through dozens of interviews with morons and giving up on the whole process. I guess that won't work for you.

Quality workers already have jobs, so to hire some quick this company will have to find people already working in a similar field and offer them a better wage. Next time I will first interview those who are already employed, then move onto unemployed applicants if that fails.

What kind of positions do you hire for?

[Ash_Williams]

Perhaps if you omit the "degree" necessary to apply to your workforce, your candidate choices will improve. Experience, hands-on education, real-world savvy people are assets anywhere.

I once thought that too, but the quality was far worse with the non-degree folks, and I had to put the degree requirement back in. I made the same argument that you did but I had to admit defeat on that one.

Gonzo's right on the minute one. It's not that hard but people are just screwups. I can understand missing the AM/PM, or the "Yesterday", but I'm sure if I used that question on an interview I'd get back crap like 360 or 1908 or they would just leave it blank.

When I first gave that question, it was meant as a gift that everyone would get. If you know how to add and subtract, and know how a clock works, and read carefully, you'll get the answer. The questions after that were the hard ones, but surprisingly most people would screw this one up. Someone actually said "it's a trick question" and didn't answer it. They couldn't explain how it was a trick.


Hey, it's not just employees with poor spelling, it's BOSSES too! I can't begin to tell you the number of bosses I've worked for with the worst spelling imaginable. Grammar or sentence structure?? Good luck.

Oh I know... the other companies we work with go more and more into decline each year. We get legal documents and such that are disasters. No one at these places, bosses or otherwise, can do things accurately. I feel like we're working with 12 year olds.

[mightymanx]

I have said for years you can teach anything to an employee, but you can't teach work ethinc in the work place. That needed to be learned in the home at a young age.

Any wonder why all the jobs are overseas? They work harder period.
Period nothing. Americans USED to have a work ethic and made better products than anyone else in the world. Then along came teevee.

Look at the chart and you will see America's decline correlates precisely with the percentage of households having teevees.

I agree that we used to be good but, the past is meaningless in the present industrial market and to be blunt the american work force is getting slaughtered on the open market because there are tons of places that are williing to work hard. So bottom line every thing is going according to plan.

[po boy]

I have said for years you can teach anything to an employee, but you can't teach work ethinc in the work place. That needed to be learned in the home at a young age.

Any wonder why all the jobs are overseas? They work harder period.
Period nothing. Americans USED to have a work ethic and made better products than anyone else in the world. Then along came teevee.

Look at the chart and you will see America's decline correlates precisely with the percentage of households having teevees.



Along with public education fluoride ect.....

[MNeagle]

I have said for years you can teach anything to an employee, but you can't teach work ethinc in the work place. That needed to be learned in the home at a young age.

Any wonder why all the jobs are overseas? They work harder period.
Period nothing. Americans USED to have a work ethic and made better products than anyone else in the world. Then along came teevee.

Look at the chart and you will see America's decline correlates precisely with the percentage of households having teevees.


May also be a correlation w/ farmer's kids moving into the towns & cities. I know my parents did in the mid-50's, and probably got a T.V. to take up their idle evening hours.

Just a wag.

[skid]

I work for a large corporation in a middle management position and have hired a few people. I used to look for top qualifications, certificates, tickets, degrees. The more the better. Now I look for attitude and how well they get along with other people. As long as the person has the basic qualifications they can be taught their job and do it well. You can't teach attitude.

[hoarder]

May also be a correlation w/ farmer's kids moving into the towns & cities. I know my parents did in the mid-50's, and probably got a T.V. to take up their idle evening hours.

Just a wag.
Did you notice how effectively teevee stereotyped rural people as ignorant, just-fell-off-a-potato-truck morons and incestual rejects? The relocation of rural America to large cities was in large part a social engineering stunt.

[Ash_Williams]

Did you notice how effectively teevee stereotyped rural people as ignorant, just-fell-off-a-potato-truck morons and incestual rejects? The relocation of rural America to large cities was in large part a social engineering stunt.

Don't worry, once we get a TV in every chinese home we can become competitive again!

[hoarder]

Don't worry, once we get a TV in every chinese home we can become competitive again!
teevees are inanimate objects but those who program them aren't.
When every Chinese home has a teevee, they will learn how the American people maliciously tricked them into buying the dollar, how easy it would be to conquer America, how much we need to be put in our place after all our empire-building and how much blond-haired, blue eyed American women are attracted to Chinese men.