Retention is as Important as New Hires

RCS Influencer Tammy Hall says finding new hires is all about trying new programs and being open to employee referrals. 

I wish that I could write an incredible article that would wow all of you into the secret sauce for new hires, but alas I cannot. Southwest Florida just like the rest of the country, remains in a labor shortage for not only our industry but for several other business sectors as well. 

We have participated in job fairs, provided internships, done outreach to high schools, community colleges and our own University to see if we can reach those few job seekers. We have shared our culture on social media in hopes of gaining interest from individuals who would find our benefits as great as we do. CFS Roofing Services does have great benefits, i.e., competitive wages, health insurance, vacation, 401K with company contributions, take home vehicles and overall, we are just a fun place to work. But even with all that, we still struggle finding people to interview for every role in our company. Up until now our best resource for new employees has been referrals. Someone knows someone who works for us and refers them to us.     

Through my community networking and outreach I recently was made aware of a program that our local Career Source offers, OJT (On the Job Training) program. This program is designed to bridge the skills gap through training provided at the employer’s worksite. It provides reimbursement to the employer of up to 50% of the wage rate of the participant for up to six months. This offsets the cost of providing training and the additional supervision related to the training of a new hire.  We just began participation in this program; therefore, I don’t have results that I can share yet. I am optimistic that we will find enthusiastic individuals who will find roofing as exciting as I have over the last eight years and as they say, “once you work in roofing it’s really hard to not stay in roofing.”   

I realize that I have not provided the specific recipe for getting that new hire into your door for an interview, but I hope you realize you are not alone in this challenge. In closing, I will leave you with this last nugget of info. Our employees have and will continue to be our best advertisement. Retention is just as important as new hires. We treat our employees with respect, provide training to give them the tools to be the best at their role, respect that they have gotten us this far and allow them a pathway for growth. Communicating this to that potential hire once you get an interview is what has sealed the deal for me when an interviewee is weighing who they want to work for.   

Tammy Hall is the Director of Marketing and Service Division for CFS Roofing Services LLC. See her full bio here.