Recent reports about the skills shortage further confirm what employers have known for some time and many of them are finding creative ways to attract and retain staff.
The Sydney Morning Herald's Mark Coultan reported ("Desperate measures employed to find staff"8/12/07) that employers are opting to creative ways to attract staff to industries where there is particular strain on business due to the lack of skilled and qualified tradepeople and other professionals.
A common practice during the first 'dot com' phase in the 90s was bonuses and bounties and it's reported that these are now being offered to find people to staff Sydney's building industry as they grapple with the strain of a near-full employment economy.
It's well known that higher wages and other perks are in force in Western Australia and Queensland to provide supply of staff for the resources boom. Mining tradesman are in high demand as are engineers, draftsmen and quantity surveyors. In addition, some employers are offering their own staff anywhere from $500 to $5000 to find people to work for the company.
Other benefits sometimes negotiated include things that make life easier or working conditions more manageable such as health care cover, mobile phones and laptops, car allowances or leases if the job requires transportation, study leave, full-fee reimbursement for courses and on-site meals.
Although none of these perks can guarantee employees will be satisfied in their jobs, such incentives go a long way to helping employers poach or shift an employee from their current role to a new one.
In a tight labour market such as this, apprentices and trainees are often benefiting both during their training (as they get paid to learn) and after their qualifications (as they are snapped up well before completing final studies).
The Herald quotes Richard Green, the director of Taylor Thomson Whitting as saying his engineering firm had withdrawn from the shortlist for two hospital projects because it did not have the staff to do the job.
Mr Green, is also the chairman of the Australian Council of Built Environment Design Professions, said other professions such as quantity surveying, architecture and planning had the same problem.
Engineering firms are recruiting overseas, trying to lure people from rival firms and lavishing attention on their own employees in case they are thinking of leaving.
One of the key aspects of attracting new employees and keeping them is building an atmosphere of enjoyment, challenges and fun in fields which might have traditionally been dull and serious. Coultan notes that engineering firms are trying hard to make their workplaces rewarding and interesting, with an emphasis on career development. To keep young employees who want to travel, companies are offering overseas exchanges.
One company, Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation (SMEC) recently hosted an afternoon at a bowls club and they offer a rooftop swimming pool, holiday accommodation, lunchtime barbecues and pool and table tennis tournaments.
