DC Velocity - February 2018

t h ou g ht l e ad er s

It’s Simple Math

Pickers Travel Less = You Save Money

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FG EF DE CD BC AB HI IJ JK KL HI IJ JK KL EF DE CD BC AB

21 31 33 V V 01 11

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Comparison

Path Optimization 305.2 feet - 33.3%

Location Sequence 457.7 feet 0.0%

Pick Location
Pick Path
AA
AA

30 DC VELOCITY FEBRUARY 2018 www.dcvelocity.com gation. Next is the selection process.

We get appropriate candidates in
front of the client, or, depending
on the location, there may be a
telephone interview. We get feed-
back from both the client and the
candidate, which we consider in the
hiring decision. The final step occurs
once the temp employee starts work.
We’re in constant contact with the
employee after the first day and first
week, and on a continuous basis
after that to ensure employee satis-
faction. We’re regularly capturing
feedback from the customer, too, to
make sure we have provided exactly
what it asked us for.

Q What can warehouse and DC manag- ers do to help that process? AGood communication between the lead manager and supervisors who will be working with the temporary employee and human resources is critical. I would hope that any HR department would be going to the floor manager and saying, “Tell me exactly what this person needs to have as skills so we can communicate that directly to the staffing company.” If you don’t have that kind of communication, a staffing agency can’t fill a position accurately and completely.

QWhich party is responsible for temp employees’ safety training and certification—for example, forklift operator certification?

AThe staffing agency is normally required to provide generic powered industrial truck training prior to placement. An agency of our size has more than 10,000 clients; there’s no way staffing agencies could do site-specific training or specific site plans for that many clients. Site-specific training and certification is the client’s responsibility, and for good reason—the client is supervising the worker, knows the worksite, and is in the best position to ensure safety.

It’s the responsibility of the temporary staffing company to have a very clear understanding of the client’s requirements and the type of powered industrial truck to be operated. In the case of forklift operators, we recruit for exactly what the client tells us. If the client just asks for a forklift operator, we will recruit for that. If a client wants an operator for a sit-down counterbalanced 5,000-pound Toyota lift truck, then that’s what we recruit for. However, employees have to have site-specific forklift training certification. It’s important to remember that forklift certification is NOT portable. The policies, procedures, and processes may be totally different from company to company, and they may have totally different forklifts. That’s why site-specific training, to be provided by the client, is required.