The key aim of any distributor is to turn over stock and not your employees. But in an industry where the work can be physically strenuous, good staff can be hard to find. Salaries can be towards the lower end of the scale and staff turnover can be common. Recruitment costs in the industrial industry can be high, but you can take some measures to ensure that you retain good employees that will add value to your company for many years.

In the past, warehouse operatives have been retained with the promise of quick promotions and pay rises, but more often than not it’s not possible to create these opportunities and staff become disillusioned and leave. Warehouse operatives today need to have far more skills than their predecessors – from computer skills to customer service excellence, they need to be on top of their game. And if you try to hire employees at a lower level, you’ll end up with a poor warehouse and high staff turnover.

You need to clearly communicate what job skills you’re looking for and you need to make sure your rates of pay are competitive (at least the National Minimum Wage). And if you’re going to pay higher rates you need to make sure your staff and business operates efficiently. Don’t be afraid to give your employees the freedom to make decisions – you may be surprised at the results!

Asking the right interview questions is key. Ask open questions to discover everything you can about a candidate’s characteristics, avoid questions that can be answered with a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’. And try to make sure you have more than one person interviewing – that way you’ll get a more balanced interpretation of how well a candidate performed.

Where to look for new employees when you’re recruiting

When you’re looking to fill warehouse vacancies, traditional methods such as advertising in the local paper can result in hundreds of applications. But there will be few who will be the right fit for your company. That’s where a recruitment agency can really help. At Premier Placement Services, we only take on candidates that are honest, hardworking and reliable. Our strict interview process means that we take care to match your requirements with the right candidate, saving you time and money when recruiting.

Distributors will always have some turnover with warehouse staff, but if you get the recruitment process right, you will have quality workers that are more likely to be loyal and stick around for years rather than months.

To start your recruitment journey, get it touch with our friendly team.