The sector needs about 24,000 total employees working on farm. Photo / Duncan Brown
The sector needs about 24,000 total employees working on farm. Photo / Duncan Brown
Opinion by Jane Muir
OPINION
One of the most confronting messages that stuck with me last year is something economist Shamubeel Eaqub delivered to farmers and myself at the People Expo: “It’s never going to be easier to find staff than it is now”.
As an eternal optimist and with a job that is about improving the capability of people in dairy farming, I didn’t want to believe this. Farmers are telling me how difficult it is to find the staff they need and want right now. I hear the stress and concern it causes and the impacts this can have on their families, friends, and lives.
Yet I am hearing this message from Shamubeel that it is only going to get harder.
Unfortunately, that is a reality we are currently faced with and is not a message I share lightly.
Attracting and retaining great people starts with creating great workplaces - somewhere that people want to work. This is important because great employees have choices, and we want them to choose dairy.
Whilst no two people are the same, we know from research done by DairyNZ and other sector organisations, that the below are some of the key things people want:
1. Remuneration packages must be competitive. People must feel they are paid fairly or better for the skills they bring and the work they do, based on every hour worked.
2. Not all hours are created equal. For early work, late work and weekend work, people generally expect a premium or something extra that is of value to them.
3. People like working for good managers. These are leaders and managers who do what they say they will and have the respect of their employees. Being a good manager and leader is critical.
4. People do their best work in great workplaces: places where they feel valued and that they belong, where they are safe (physically and emotionally) and know what they are there to do and why it’s important.
5. Helping people achieve or get closer to their dreams counts for a lot. This sounds big, but if you work to understand what this looks like for your employees, you are on to a winner.
This list is a good starting point for employers, as it has a focus on making decisions with people at the centre.
I am not saying this is easy. Being a great employer is a commitment and hard mahi, however, people doing it well will say that it provides a sense of satisfaction and joy as they see people thrive under their leadership, while also delivering business success.
This may also seem more daunting and difficult with other challenges in the sector; however, people are key to the success of your business and can help you understand where to gain efficiencies and save money.
I’m excited that Shamubeel is one of the speakers at our upcoming People Expo events in March, alongside Waikato dairy farm owners Sue and David Fish and Chris Parsons, chief commercial officer of MyFarm.
They will be there to test thinking, provide insights into the challenges they have faced, along with discussing practical tips that can be applied to farm teams.
These are key discussions as, in time, the New Zealand dairy story won’t focus on the number of milking cows, but the people who are working on your farms - the people who are New Zealand dairy.
