Is it really the applicants' fault or maybe still yours? I had a conversation recently with a medium-sized company complaining that only leftovers apply to them and then are too dumb to perform the simplest office tasks.
When asked about the pay, the response was: "They should be glad they get minimum wage!"
When asked about the monthly salary, the answer was: "Every month is different, I pay according to actual hours. In February, for example, they work fewer days than in July!"
When asked about the training: "What am I supposed to really train them for? I explained it once. Then I can expect that the new person knows it. After all, they get paid for it."
He still can't explain why he doesn't find good new employees and why turnover in the company is so high...
What do I want to say with this? It's not always just the applicants' fault. Often, it also depends on the company and how it organizes its recruiting and onboarding. If the recruiting is already crap, why should I apply there?
I recently saw the owner of a carpentry business in a documentary who looks for employees through various social media channels tailored to the target group. On Xing, he searches for construction engineers and on TikTok for apprentices. At the same time, he offers his employees benefits like decent occupational pension schemes, training opportunities, and an "apprentice taxi" to and from the company. He receives many and also good applications.
Many companies still haven't understood that the labor market has changed over the past decades. The "hire-and-fire" policy combined with "I initially hire for one year without reason, extend for another year, then see whether I keep the employee permanently" has left its mark, and applicants now look more closely at where they apply. It starts with the working atmosphere, continues through the working conditions, and doesn't end with appreciation, which is expressed, among other things, in fair pay.
Totally agree!!!
I don’t want to go on forever, but I simply see a very big change in people’s minds. Buzzwords: work-life balance, self-fulfillment, and self-determination. At some point, people realized there’s more to life than busting your ass, being enslaved to pay for a house, only to find out on your deathbed that you don’t even know your daughter’s second first name.
All very, very personal decisions. EVERYONE is allowed to do what they want (professionally speaking, please don’t generalize; there are always exceptions, but this is not about a political discussion), and if someone finds their happiness at McDrive handing out food or in the jungle of Costa Rica, let them... as long as no one else is harmed, they are not "useless." Everyone needs to eat, and everyone has dignity (keyword: settling for minimum wage).
I’m not passionate about my job either... I have quite a high academic degree with personnel responsibility and, according to statistics, I am in the top 5% salary-wise... I am not useless; I have other priorities, and if my daughter someday says she wants to do yoga in India because it makes her happy, then she should do it without ifs and buts, even though she would rather be EXPECTED to become a doctor or lawyer from our family background.
Sorry, a little off-topic, no attack, just presenting a different point of view.
Now back to the construction topic :)
