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Finding new employees

7 posts
  1. Douglas Eggert
    Douglas Eggert avatar
    1 posts
    9/24/2013 5:09 PM
    What are all of you folks going to do to entice new employees for next season?

    I got the unofficial position of my park district I work for today.... 130 hours per month....period.

    I'm already pinched by a locale with higher incomes at McDonalds and other fast food ventures....

    So I'm figuring on starting early...

    Thoughts?



  2. Rosenthal Gregg
    Rosenthal Gregg avatar
    9/25/2013 4:09 AM
    Can you offer the a round of golf per week, possibly a simple lunch to go along with daily work? Just a thought things available at our place. Monday is employee golf day in afternoon after work, and we get lunch, although early 10:45 its free every day except Monday and Weekends when we just mow and go .

    GreggR



  3. Gary Carls
    Gary Carls avatar
    20 posts
    9/25/2013 2:09 PM
    Douglas,

    Next year will be interesting.

    I haven't really had any seasonal type labor until the last few years as they started cutting regular staff. It wasn't easy finding two guys this year but we managed. They both work basically 40 hours per week. Our current understanding is that starting January 1 next year these types of employees will only be allowed to work 25 hours per week. We also have a rule where they can only work 900 hours/fiscal years so the guys we have now who are good won't be available to us again until after July 1 next year. Given the 25 hour rule we'll also need to actually try to find more employees with less desirable working conditions to offer them next year.

    Time will tell.

    Gary K. Carls, CGCS, President - Oakland Turfgrass Education Initiative

  4. Melvin Waldron
    Melvin Waldron avatar
    43 posts
    9/25/2013 3:09 PM
    Gary and Doug,

    I'm a little surprised although maybe it's part of the exercise to see if you can get your work done inside those parameters, but large employers like yourselves are exempt next year from the implementation as far as the healthcare issue is concerned, aren't they?

    I know we will soon be starting our budget process to turn in by December for the 2014-15 year and it would be good to know what requirements we will be facing. I do know our city system is anyone over 1500 hours need to be offered benefits, so I believe that is about 28.8 hours per week for 52 weeks, really 30 hours per week, since if they hit the 1500 hour mark then they earn two weeks' vacation.

    I might be proactive and e-mail my supervisor about this.

    As far as finding employees in the past, I have used various amounts of retirees and students, of course students were a little easier to find being on a college campus. We would have as many as 20 people, but many only worked 25 to 30 hours or even less depending on their class schedule. I was lucky to find a couple of people that had experience and just worked weekends (was lucky I guess). I do know it sometimes makes it a little tough to find a retiree that can do more than mowing, so the skilled/grunt work will typically fall on your FTE's. Only problem we have here is there are only 3 of us, makes it a little tough in the summer when we have to sometimes mow first and projects get prioritized.

    Mel

    Melvin H. Waldron III, CGCS, Horton Smith Golf Course, City of Springfield/Greene County MO

  5. Gary Carls
    Gary Carls avatar
    20 posts
    9/25/2013 4:09 PM
    Mel,

    Not sure what the exact rules and regulations are.....just what we are being told by our folks downtown as far as what they are planning to do starting January 1. The city does have somewhere in the neighborhood of 800 employees right now.

    Right now, I feel bad for a lot of folks who are already working two jobs to provide for a family but at least getting some kind of insurance help from one of those employers. Looks like that may not be the case in the future?

    Gary K. Carls, CGCS, President - Oakland Turfgrass Education Initiative

  6. Douglas Eggert
    Douglas Eggert avatar
    1 posts
    9/25/2013 9:09 PM
    My Park District has less than 30 full timers. So I don't know if a different set of rules kicks in or not.

    Neighboring clubs and districts are using the 1500 hour rule....

    I see a lot of clubs, supers, managers, and full employees have a heavy toll taken on them next season.

    The sentiment in my area is some clubs will eventually close, unemployment will climb and will cause a lowering of fees to remain solvent. I hope I'm wrong.



  7. Andy Jorgensen
    Andy Jorgensen avatar
    1 posts
    9/26/2013 7:09 AM
    A few clubs in our area are discussing possibly trading employees throughout the week. Each employee would be employed by each club, and work around 25 hours each week. For instance, group A would work Monday-Wednesday at the first course, then Thursday-Sunday at the second course. Group B would do the opposite. On paper they would get roughly 25 hours Monday-Wednesday, then 22 or so at the other course Thursday - Sunday. Only hiccup would be rotating weekends would give them 41 hours each week between the two clubs.

    Plus side is the clubs would avoid paying benefits and overtime, thus saving money. The clubs would also get experienced employees that are well rounded.

    Downside is you would have to train each employee in "your way" of operation. And the employees would not get benefits because they are part-time. Also, starting a project on a Wednesday would require showing someone else on Thursday what's been going on.



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