Warehouse Recruiting: 5 tips for hiring warehouse workers

Hiring warehouse workers can be a gruelling task. Finding the right applicants for the right warehouse jobs can be a challenge, so what is the best way to go about it? Some of the best advice that we’ve heard for hiring warehouse workers is to be transparent about the skills needed, be clear on the demands of the job, and to hire based on attitude, not aptitude. 

In this post, we’ll explore these warehouse recruiting tips and others in more detail.

Why is Recruiting Good Warehouse Staff Important?

Employee attrition is the biggest issue in the warehouse staffing industry. Constant staff turnover, especially of new hires, means hiring workers who are likely to stick around is crucial. Hiring right involves hiring people who know exactly what they are getting into, who have the right attitude and the required skills to get the job done.

5 Tips for Recruiting Warehouse Workers

1. Be clear about the skills needed

All warehouse environments and the jobs within them differ, so it is important to be transparent with applicants about the skill level expected from employees. This will not only create a feeling of trust between applicants and management, but it will also reduce the disconnect between expectations and reality. Attrition is one of the biggest obstacles in the warehouse industry, and as research shows the main reason for attrition is misaligned candidate expectations so being transparent can help combat that issue in a major way. 

2. Be transparent about the demands of the work

Is it a seasonal, peak, temporary or, full-time position? Does the work involve lifting heavy boxes, driving machines or matching labels to parcels? Being transparent about how physically and mentally demanding the job is will decrease the likelihood of employees leaving due to misunderstood conditions. 

3. Hire for attitude, not aptitude

Warehouse work is often monotonous, repetitive and physically exhausting so it’s crucial people have the right attitude to take on that challenge. Don’t rely on Resumes or prior experience as an indicator for future performance; what’s more important is a willingness to learn and work hard. Without a high level of commitment and the right attitude, an employee is more likely to leave for a job with fewer physical demands.. 

4. Encourage employee referrals

Relying on referrals could create incentives for current employees, as well as make the recruitment process easier. The old adage that “good people tend to recommend other good people” is a good rule of thumb when it comes to manual work in a warehouse setting. Existing warehouse employees also tend to be able to persuade people to join roles better than recruiters so acceptance rates tend to be higher with referrals. 

5. Use assessments to automate candidate screening

Another great tip for hiring warehouse workers is to use pre-hire assessments to gauge exactly who is the right fit for the job and automate manual processes. At ThriveMap, we offer many services regarding pre-hire assessments and have done thorough research on different industries and how these assessments can benefit each one. For warehouse jobs, we know that speed to hire is important so being able to let applicants fill out a pre-hire assessment that explains exactly what is expected from the job and give them a hiring decision almost instantly can make a huge difference to your hiring KPIs. One company using a ThriveMap assessment managed to reduce their time to fill for warehouse roles by 34%.

Our website highlights the benefits of using these assessments, and exactly how they can help you, no matter what industry your company belongs to.

Closing

Hiring for warehouse jobs can be challenging – often it’s hard to find candidates and applicant dropout rates can be a significant problem. However, by implementing these tips into your recruitment process, you should achieve better results. When going through your next warehouse recruitment process, be sure to be transparent about skills and demand, look for the right attitude, not aptitude, encourage employee referrals, and, of course, consider using pre-hire assessments to automate your selection process.

Further reading

If you liked this post, read more from our blog!

• What is a Realistic Job Assessment and how does it work?
• 6 reasons we should stop asking for CVs
• Improve Talent Acquisition: 5 cost-effective tips