I hear on a weekly basis nobody wants to work anymore. Millennials are lazy. People these days are afraid of work. I hired somebody and they left after a week. The list goes on and on.
Maybe it’s not the workers that’s the problem. Maybe it’s your business model. When Millennials have opportunities to do online work at $50 per hour, your minimum wage job doesn’t sound all that great anymore. Don’t get me wrong, I have seen more than one business pay employees more than the owners trying to be fair to employees. But all that does is make the owners resentful of the employees.
There are also great employees out there that are able to do two, three, or four times the work of a new hire because they are motivated, understand the work processes and think about efficiency all the time. I know of a landscaper that went from a 3 person crew to a motivated 2 person crew and did not see any change in productivity. But do these motivated employees make double? Usually not even close.
In just about any job market, there are highly qualified people looking for work. But do you have a business environment that they are willing to come to? It’s a hard pill to swallow, but maybe it’s time to look in the mirror and ask what can you do to make the job better.
So what can you do? Beef up your people management skills. From hiring to training programs to management, work on your skills first. Second, improve the profitability so you can hire and keep better people. It may mean walking away from low margin customers, or changing your product mix to attract a different demographic with more disposable income. Third, share in the successes. Give people a say in their future and reward them for a job well done. It is your job to create win-win situations. Look in the mirror, take responsibility and make changes that work.
