subject: Managing Temporary Workers within the Construction Industry [print this page] Managing Temporary Workers within the Construction Industry
Temporary or agency employees are a very important resource for management in the development industry. They are used to satisfy a brief-term would like for labour, generally of a selected ability group, without the requirement to keep several people on the corporate's books. Although the cost might be more expensive as a per-hour rate, if you're taking account of employee tax, pension/superannuation payments, management time and HR for every full time employee, using agency staff becomes a very engaging option.
One potential pitfall is for a management gap to occur - who is responsible for the worker's development and growth? The agency who staff the individual or the company where they are deployed? To get the most out of the agency workers they have to be managed on a daily basis, and this can be best done at the place of work. Below are the key areas that want to be addressed. One individual needs to be responsible for managing all agency workers and this could be built into their job description - this is often to maximise the worth from agency employees. Management would like to accept that there is some cost in time and resources when using agency employees.
Preparation
Before agency staff are brought in, ensure that you have got the right equipment for them to do their job properly. Somebody commencing work as a web site cleaner may require cleaning fluids, cloths, mop & bucket, broom, dustpan & brush and protecting gloves. If you do not give the correct equipment it can offer a negative impression of the quality of labor expected from them and could forestall them from completing their tasks. Create a structure for every day no matter how frequent agency workers are used. It is important to document the structure of the day. This can facilitate them feel comfortable, recognize what is expected of them and give them an opportunity to raise any problems they may have (health and safety, skills etc).
Create a structure that defines activity to be disbursed within the morning, lunchtime activity and pre-finishing. You'll be able to embrace conferences with them within the morning or after lunch to test on progress.
As an example: 7.00: Open entrance gates, open equipment store rooms, 7.15: Meet with supervisor, thirteen:00 - Guarantee all food waste is far from lunch area, 16.thirty: Shut gates, close store room
Set time-frames for work
A straightforward and effective management tool - setting time-frames clarifies expectations for each sides and will be used to discuss any problems if the timeframe is not met. Even if there is no urgency over a task being completed, raise for "this to be done by the end of today" and it in all probability can be.
Explain why one thing needs to be done
Giving some background into the task that you wish done can help the agency employee to frame their work during a bigger context, improve their understanding and drive their motivation. If they're cleaning, explain how keeping the positioning clean is very important in reducing accidents or harm to equipment and finished work.
Assume they do not know what to try to to till they show they have the skills
Ask most men if they recognize the way to use a angle-grinder or a jackhammer and that they nearly always say "Yes" - especially on a building site! When coping with new agency staff or giving a replacement task to existing ones, work with them and show them what to try and do the first time. Check they're happy and cut back the danger of mistakes and accidents.
Use completely different styles of management for various folks
This can be one amongst the toughest things to get right with full time employees and a nightmare with temporary staff. How do you recognize if someone works best with regular supervision or by being given a task and allowed to use their initiative to complete it?
My suggestion is to start cautiously - frequently check on progress and have several, short discussion with them every day. At the end of each day, check if they feel the level of supervision is OK and work with them to find the right balance. Ask them queries about what they need done. Years ago, sales folks realised that using open questions gets a lot of information out of customers than closed (yes/no response) questions. When speaking to agency employees, use the identical tactic to open communication channels and obtain honest feedback. Strive "How did you do nowadays?" or "Will you speak me through what tasks you probably did today"
Give feedback - especially positive
Management may be a two means street and people need to feel they're obtaining one thing back for the work they have done. Yes, they're getting paid, but money isn't a key motivator for many people. Job satisfaction and feeling that you just contributed towards a goal are abundant additional important. Make certain that agency workers are told when they have done a smart job - it is typically the last thing on a busy managers mind therefore make it half of the daily structure to say thank you.
In summary, pay as abundant time and effort managing agency employees as you are doing on full time workers and you'll be rewarded with motivated, engaged individuals who contribute to your business.
