Livestock Wala'au

S5 Ep 01: How We Recruit, Onboard, And Keep Great Ag Employees

• Season 5 • Episode 1

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We examine why hiring feels harder across agriculture and share a practical system to recruit, onboard, and retain employees on farms and ranches. We compare labor signals in Hawaii, Nebraska, and the U.S., then turn data into day-one checklists, mentorship, and culture that lasts.

• Hawaii, Nebraska, and U.S. labor snapshots and trends
• Why applications rise while qualified fits fall
• Writing job titles, summaries, and clear duty lists
• Separating required vs preferred skills for better fit
• Building pipelines with schools and internships
• Onboarding steps that speed productivity and trust
• Safety as care: PPE, hazards, and procedures
• Mentorship and monthly check-ins to reduce turnover
• Seasonal expectations for overtime and schedules
• Retention through culture, skills ladders, and flexibility


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SPEAKER_01:

Aloha. Today's episode is sponsored by the Livestock Extension Group out of the University of Hawaii, Manoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience, the Center for Ag Profitability out of the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, and the Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program.

SPEAKER_00:

Aloha, welcome to the Livestock Bala Ow, a podcast aimed to provide educational support, information, guidance, and outreach to livestock stakeholders in Hawaii and the rest of the U.S. We are your host, Meli Oshiro and Shannon Sand. And today we'll be talking with our very own Shannon Sand about some practical strategies to employ and retain employees. So thank you, Shannon, for talking story with us today on this what you know we don't always topic, we don't always think about, but such an important one in operation.

SPEAKER_01:

Especially in agriculture. And I don't, I mean, it doesn't even matter what part of agriculture you're in. I think uh just employee intake, onboarding, and retention. I mean, those are really three separate topics with lots of subtopics. So we're gonna try and I'm gonna try and keep it broad, but I went ahead and I did pull some information for Hawaii, Nebraska, and the US, just so we can kind of get a general overview of of what's happening. I I'm nerdy. I figure you all know this at this point, right? I was like, Melee's also nervous.

SPEAKER_00:

You're a data person.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, Melee's also nerdy in her own way, too, right? So um, but I wanted to pull stuff that would be specific mostly to our listeners, because I know we do have a lot of people that are out west, and we have a lot of people in like that Hawaii area that listen to this. So I thought, you know, pull pull information and numbers that are relevant to our listeners. So um, and these numbers are as of June of 2025, so within the last three or four months. So basically, Hawaii is, and I'm gonna start with Hawaii and then I'm gonna move on to Nebraska and then the US. Is that okay? Sounds good. Okay. I was like, I can always start big and then go smaller, but I was just like, I I already have the Hawaii stuff pulled, so I was like very excited to talk about it. So basically, Hawaii's economy is in general, as of June 2025, experiencing what they would call moderate overall job growth with an unemployment rate of 2.8% again as of June 2025. The state is currently projecting 6.1% increase in total employment over the next decade, adding approximately 41,000 jobs and change. Um, some key sectors with strong job gains are things like, which again, what would you think of Malay? Healthcare, food service, and transportation. So again, I think of like the the I well, I don't want to say big island, but like the islands that are more like city-based, right? So like Oahu, Maui kind of things. So that's where probably most of that is expected. Again, these are just assumptions and guesstimates, you guys. So it could be different. But these are what they're thinking. Although a lot of businesses are facing continued labor shortages, which I have to be honest, after talking to a lot of experts throughout the country and the world, quite frankly, it's it's not even just a country a US wide thing. It's an seems to be a global issue getting getting labor, uh, especially for a specific industry. So again, I think of like healthcare and agriculture and food industries, quite hard, right? Because you have to train from the bottom up. Healthcare, you gotta go to school for quite a while, depending on what it is. I mean, you know, so some of those you can get done pretty quickly, but like some of them, you know, you're in school a long time if you're a doctor. It's what?

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, eight years at least.

SPEAKER_01:

Eight years or more, and if you're specialist longer, yeah, yeah. So again, you know, so uh yeah, a lot. A lot. So uh current unemployment rate as of June of 2025 is 2.8%. So that's that's pretty good. Uh, and it says basically their guesstimate, this is the US government, the BLS, is about 19,300 people are unemployed. So I do want to make a comment though. There there are unemployed people, and then there are people and unemployed people are people who are actively seeking work. So we also have what are called, now I'm having a moment, discouraged workers that basically couldn't find a job, so they've given up and they're not considered part of that um unemployment rate. So there might be more of those, right? So again, and we'll talk. I have some numbers for South for South Dakota. Why am I thinking of South Dakota for Nebraska that we will talk about in I have some numbers for Nebraska that we'll talk about in a little bit? So basically, the state is expecting 83,000 new job openings annually over the next decade, which is great. Like I said, healthcare, food service, and transportation industries are the ones that are projected to lead growth. Uh, shortages, again, like I said, there's just an overall job shortage uh within the US and Hawaii as well as the world right now, again, across many sectors, but particularly healthcare, hospitality, retail, and agriculture. So some of these factors influencing the job market are things like demographic shifts with larger populations aging 65 to 74 compared to younger age groups. That's creating a shortage of replacement workers. Uh, we're also staying in the job market longer than we have historically, right? People, because we are living longer and we are in general, knock on wood, living healthier lives. So we stay in that that job market longer, which also causes issues for upward mobility for younger and like mid-think Melee and I's age, mid-range employees, right? So uh it can cause some issues. So obviously, you know, we're five years out of the pandemic, but that pandemic did lead to some temporary outflow of workers from the islands, and the returning labor force has been very slow to come back to the islands again, Melee. You have probably seen, experienced this. I know when we were trying to hire people, even when I was there in 22, oh, it was difficult to say the least. So as far as things go in Nebraska, um, our unemployment rate is 3%. The labor force grew. Uh oh, and these numbers are as of August 2025. So all these BLS numbers are updated by the states at different times, and our Nebraska's is updated as of August, whereas again, Hawaii's is since June. So our unemployment rate is currently 3%. Our labor force grew to a preliminary record high of 1,089,600. Uh, labor force participation. So remember when I said we have discouraged workers, labor force participation for the state overall. That means again, people looking for jobs, people who have jobs and are still looking for jobs. Because a lot of times you'll have people that are like in a position but maybe looking to move on to something again where it's either higher paying or higher job, is 69.5%. So again, there's like 30.5 that are have either, again, due to illness or uh discouragement or whatever, have just fallen out of that system the system, basically. Uh, non-farm jobs are 1,064,100. As of August 2025, Nebraska has added 1,100 net payroll jobs and 1,500 net private payroll jobs. So again, pay the the one is like federal or state jobs, and then the other is obviously like private industry positions. Over the last 12 months leading up to August 2025, the state added 6,600 total payroll jobs and 3,500 private payroll jobs. Um, there are some, the job market has cooled since its peak in 2022, which again, I think a lot of people have have seen and experienced and heard about. The ratio, the ratio of job openings to unemployed persons has normalized to pre-pandemic levels in Nebraska, suggesting strong but less overheated markets. Challenges appear to be affecting younger workers more significantly with unemployment rates for those under 25 and 2025. In contrast, unemployment for older workers has remained lower or unchanged. And again, I'm making assumptions here, but some of that is probably because those older workers already have jobs that they are comfortable in, slash do not want to take a chance and leave, versus that 25 and under. That's when you're getting out of school or trade school even kind of area. And I was like, so it just seems to be much harder for them, at least here. While statewide unemployment is low, rates can vary county by county. For example, in June of 2025, Hall County had the highest unemployment rate at 4.8%, while Dundee County had the lowest at 2.2%. So job growth has really been most notable in the following areas over the last 12 months. And you'll note they're very similar to Hawaii. So again, um, education and health services and leisure and hospitality. So education and health services added 6,599 jobs over the year ending in May 2025. Leisure and hospitality added 4,217 jobs over the same period. According to a Kansas City Federal Reserve economist, service providing industries have continued to expand, even as some goods producing industries have experienced recent job losses. Okay, now let's talk talk about the nation, which I think we kind of have a general idea based on the fact that I just even location-wise, I think it's very interesting that we have we have holes in kind of similar industries. Yeah. So uh labor force and employment in the US. And again, I pulled all this stuff from BLS, which is the Bureau of Labor Statistics. So if y'all want, you're more than welcome to go. If you Google it, BLS is going to be one of the first things that pops up. So the unemployment rate as of is 4.3%, with 22,000 jobs added to the non-farm payrolls in August. The employment population ratio was 59.6%, remaining unchanged from the prior month. The labor force participation rate was also stable at 62.3%. So uh nationwide is a little lower than Nebraska. And then we didn't get numbers for Hawaii. So those were not reported from back in June. Uh, while the labor market shows signs of stability, some indicators suggest a slowdown with private employers shedding. That means they got rid of or laid off 32,000 jobs in September, according to uh the ADP. The unemployment rate has risen slightly to its highest since October of 2021, signaling a potential slowdown in the labor market despite a small increase in job creation in the overall non-farm sector. Private employers lost jobs in September. Uh a contracting labor supply, possibly due to so as you can see, we have again overall a pretty pretty decent labor market, particularly in Nebraska and Hawaii, is actually fairly strong when you compare it to the U.S. one. The main topic that we're talking about today, though, is again, how do you recruit employees? So, Melee, when you're looking for an employee, now I know you work for the state, so you have specific steps you have to go through and specific places you have to advertise. But if you were not, what are some pot what are some potential places that you would okay? So I think we know hiring is difficult, right, Mele? When you've tried to hire someone, you have to go through specific things because you work for the state and the university. But even if you had open options, I everyone I talk to who does private hiring, or again, even if you're government, it's very difficult right now to get solid candidates. Yeah. So you might not have a lack of applications necessarily, but there are like relevant skills, relevant experience, um, as well as soft skills, which quite frankly in a job matter an awful lot. Like, how do you handle other people? You know, how do you again? I think of there are so many different kinds of agriculture. So I think of like Big Island has a lot of tourist tourist related ag. So a lot of them do tours. And I'm like, you gotta have somebody who's good with soft skills to be leading around by like a group of people, right?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, no, that's so true. I don't I think no matter what position you're going into, it's a matter of I mean, I always like to look at it as um how this, you know, can this individual, whoever you're looking at, whatever skills you're looking for, can they hit the ground money when they come in? Because if they can, I feel like then that means they have the skills, you know, to one, either learn the area that they're going into and and you know, really excel at it. And uh they're gonna take the and they're gonna and they're gonna take the initiative to learn what they need to be do well in that position, right? And I think that's that's important for me, and not just the skills they may have learned academically, you know, but what have they learned in the workforce in the past that's gonna help them with that, right? I think that's that's the important part.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, and so once we found this like amazing, wonderful candidate, right? And let's say you've hired them, you really want to make sure when you bring somebody on that you're really setting yourself and them up for success. And it can take, you know, when you've hired someone, it can take several weeks to months for new employees to really reach their full potential on the operation. So, because you're talking about changes in work environment and understanding operations, expectations, building a rapport with new coworkers, which can make a big difference. If personalities do not mesh well, that oftentimes will not work out, you know, that can limit productivity. Uh, a thorough onboarding plan can really reduce this lag time, though, in terms of productivity. A thorough onboarding plan can reduce this lag in productivity by introducing employees ways that they can be successful early on. Things like training. So hire again, how much time is needed to properly train? Because depending on your operation and how difficult it is and what the job is, obviously, there can be a lot of time that's spent there, regardless of experience. As I always say, you could take me from a cow calf operation and put me into a dairy operation, and I would be lost like a feather merchant in a windstorm, y'all. Okay. So I would have to be trained, I feel like, from the ground up, because a dairy operation is very different than a cow calf operation in terms of certain in terms of how it operates, you know? It'd be the same thing if if we plopped melee into, well, I was gonna say sheep, but she's done sheep, but we'll say swine. Like a like a very large swine operation, let's say here on the mainland, right? Where everything is enclosed, or a poultry operation that's completely enclosed, right? She has an ag background, she has a lot of agricultural experience that's like relevant and timely and like all of those important things. But you drop her into the wrong, I don't even want to say the wrong situation, but a different situation than she's familiar with. She's gonna have to learn from the ground up. So that training and the time needed is gonna be really important. Um, a lot of times, like I said, several weeks to months to reach that full potential. But that strong onboarding process has been shown to increase productivity by over 70%. What do I mean when I say a strong onboarding process? I mean it's I feel like it's kind of simple common sense things a lot of times, but if we don't have it labeled out and put on a piece of paper or sent out in an email or text, like you need to, it needs to be somewhere, quite frankly, properly like easily displayed, where maybe everybody looks at it. Because I know a lot of times I think of like my family, like they have like an operations, uh I was gonna say clipboard, but like an operations board where things are. So like all the OSHA information is kept in there, all of the like standard operating procedures or SOPs, um, onboarding stuff, it's all kind of kept up there and it's just simple and easy stuff. It's again, who do I go to if I have questions? Who is my current mentor? And mentorship is a whole other basket that we can fall into uh in regards to getting somebody onboarded in a timely or quick process. So, and I know Melee, you've done some mentoring with when you guys have had new APTs and things like that, because it just gets them it's easier sometimes if they just see it done and they can do it with you. So, in order to again increase that productivity level quicker. Another important benefit of a robust onboarding plan is again faster integration into the workplace culture, so that positive a positive work environment keeps others working at your farm, is really important to new hires to see early and to see often again. If if workplace culture, I know people don't like using the word workplace culture sometimes, but it is an important one. If if people in general, if met if personalities don't mesh and get along, that makes it much harder and you're more likely to lose employees quicker. So it does happen. Getting the hang of things happens sooner and more effectively when the new employees feel like asking questions is normal and that they will be treated with respect when they risk revealing ignorance. Again, like I said, if you take me and you drop me into a swine operation, a poultry operation, I'm not gonna know what's going on. Okay. Now, if you take me to a cow calf operation, I'll be fine and dandy. But I was like, you drop me in the wrong scenario, I'm not gonna know what's going on, and I'm gonna need to know who to go to to ask for help. So again, really make sure, you know, there's a really open and willingness for people to like bring in new employees and they're happy to have them. And like, again, build that good workplace culture. Uh, in an atmosphere of disrespect and impatience, the tendency is to hide the need for help. And also, those people will be looking for other jobs a lot of times pretty quickly, and as soon as they can, they will leave, which is not what we want. You know, really fostering that positive atmosphere is gonna help keep people longer.

SPEAKER_00:

And I think we have to remember as um, you know, as employees or in the employer, you know, you chose that person to come and work for you, right? If you're interviewing people and whatnot, and if that is a selected employee um for that position, you chose them for a reason, right? You saw qualities in them that you felt will be good into the position that they're hiring, being hired into. And so why not give them the best foot forward, right? By having those opportunities to to learn on the operation. And I feel like even if you came from if you're going from one cow calf operation. Or a swine operation to another one, right? Even if you're working within the same, the same um area, every operation has different ways that they proceed with different tasks or you know, the way they handle different things on their on their operation, everything might be a little bit different. So, regardless, right? You might be very skilled in the health of swine or husbandry or all those kinds of things, but on that operation, just how they do things might be a little bit different. So those onboardings, I think that's an important part, you know. Uh even in Extension, now we have a little mentorship program that goes on that was created by a couple of agents who saw the need there, and has been extremely helpful when I started and you went through it. You and I both went through it when we started with University of Hawaii. It was so good. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

So and I've been through it here.

SPEAKER_00:

So you know, and and it's it is it's helpful because you know where the resources are to access that you need, you know, or you know who to just ask the question to when you have a question. And so it will respond, you know.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, you know, you know, you know, you you get like, yeah, that's really helpful.

SPEAKER_00:

So I think regardless of what position it is, you know, doesn't matter if you're working at the farm stand or working, you know, in the farmhouse kind of thing, right? It doesn't matter. Those kind of things always are are useful. And I feel like your employees and they come on if you see that they see that extra effort, and that that just kind of makes him want to be like, okay, this is maybe someplace I want to stay.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, I mean, part of why people stay a lot of times is is the work culture, or they're again other employees being like friends or family a lot of times. I mean, that it makes a huge difference. So yeah, having that strong onboarding process is helpful. And then again, having that positive work culture go together. I mean, we know from research that organizations with a strong onboarding process improve new hire retention by 82% and productivity like by over 70%, right? And new as new employees come on and start having impressions of like your operation, it's really important to consider what is that experience like? Is it welcoming and well planned, or are employees basically left to like stare into space and figure it out uh on their own? It happens. I I've met people that like when they started working, their the other employees and even the man some of the managers did not know they were hired and were supposed to be starting work that day. And like when when you go to a farm or ranch, melee, and they don't know who you are, and they don't know why you're there. I'm gonna let you guys imagine what that scenario is like. Because they're gonna be like, we don't know you, we don't know where you're from. Yep. Like what's happening? Yep. So it would not be the most, it's not the most welcoming situation in that in that point in time, but it is really important. Again, a strong onboarding can help so so much. And again, people just knowing who to go to to ask questions, uh you know, know who to go to for questions, understanding whatever your processes and procedures are, because I agree with you, Melee. Right, I will say I was like, if you if you took if we took you and we put you in a cow calf operation, you'd know probably 85% of it. But there are gonna there's gonna be that 15 to 20 percent maybe that we're not gonna know, and somebody's gonna have to explain to us because every operation manages and does things a little bit different, and it might be a lot different because maybe they're a certified beef or certified Angus or certified Cementol or certified Hereford, and they have specific practices, or there are all kinds of third-party certifications now, depending on where you're going into the food chain. So, I mean all kinds of things out there. So, again, really explaining that. So, that thorough onboarding plan can really reduce the lag in productivity by introducing employees, ways to be successful early on. And again, they're pretty simple things. I think it's understanding who to go to if you have questions, understanding key processes and procedures. So, again, that what do I not know about this operation that I need to know in terms of how it's managed and what those expectations are for me to do? Expectations for performance. I think that's a big one. A lot of uh managers don't necessarily talk about, especially in agriculture, until it's time.

unknown:

Right?

SPEAKER_00:

Or the review.

SPEAKER_01:

Right? Performance review. So, you know, and I always say please don't have that talk only once a year. You need to be like, especially when somebody's new or if somebody's new to that business or area. Um, and again, even if they're not, it's really important check in with them once a month at least. Because a lot of times, you know, when we're especially an egg, you you are trained, you are told what you need to do, you are told who you need to ask questions to, and then you are told to go with God. Right? Sometimes that happens. You're like, okay, take care of these animals. This is how we want you to do it. And I'm like, yeah, and I was like, well, in certain situations, I'm gonna need some some help with things. So, you know, think calving, lambing, you know, yeah, egg. I don't know what egg laying season is, but I'm sure there's an egg laying season, so because I know they lay way less in winter, but you know, again, knowing processes and procedures, really important, and then those expectations for performance. So, do we have a specific calving rate we expect someone to do if they're monitoring a herd and that's their job? I always loved this quote I found, and I don't remember who said it, so just I'm sure I'll mildly mess this up, but I think it's like very valid um and like just a good one. In an atmosphere of disrespect and impatience, the tendency is to hide the need for help. And I think that's so true. Because I was like, if someone again who because we have a lot of people going into ag that have no ag background now, they they come from the cities, or even if they come from a rural background. I mean, I've seen it where like I've worked with college kids that have degrees in like ag business or animal science, they have never been on a farmer ranch in their life. Yeah, or if they were raised on a farmer ranch, for whatever reason, mom or dad were like, no, no, no, no need. And I and I don't know whatever those reasons are, but I've seen that happen with people. So again, really making sure like somebody knows who to ask for questions and who to talk to, where to go to look up procedures and processes. I would say make safety a big thing because you know, our jobs can be very dangerous at times. Again, I think of livestock dealing with in some cases very large animals, right? And they are animals, so they can at times be unpredictable. So now that I beat the horse dead about an onboarding plan, you might be wondering what is in one, right? So there's the initial welcome, which again, it's basically just a few steps. I I like to keep it pretty simple. I have a class or a program that I do, and and we sit down and we practice writing an onboarding plan again, and we do it in 15 minutes. It's short, it's simple, it's sweet, it doesn't need to be super difficult. Some of them have taken taken them and like further modified them for their own use later on. But again, an initial welcome. So show your new hire that you're glad to have them join the team with a warm welcome. Clarify their name, right? So as I always say, sometimes Charles likes to be called Charlie or Chuck or whatever. So uh get get clarification about what they prefer to be called. Uh make sure you've communicated the new hire's arrival to other key people so they can share in the enthusiasm. Like I stated earlier, I have literally seen it happen where no one knew said employee was supposed to be arriving and or starting that day. So don't, don't, yeah, don't be those people if you can avoid it. I mean, sometimes it's not your fault you didn't know someone was coming. But I was like, really make sure I hopefully that's communicated to everybody else so they can again say, hey, welcome. We're so excited to have you. Uh it like I said, it can be very disheartening to someone who just did not know when other people did not know they were coming. Um share your farm vision and mission statements if you have those, so that the new hire can know and understand what your values are related to your operation, right? So if you have those and you've done some business planning, um, include a farm tour and introductions can really help add a positive first impression. But again, not everybody, I mean, we're all new, right? At some point, we're not gonna know where everything is. So having a farm tour right away is a great way to do it rather than just saying, hey, we're fixing fence today, go do that East Pasture for me. Um I'm terrible at cardinal directions. I'd be like, you have to give me better instructions than that, quite frankly. But again, personally, but I was just like, again, general information and procedures, like I've said. So new employees will want to know where they can put their belongings, is there a uniform dress code? Um, where do we have lunch? So a lot of operations eat lunch together, a lot of operations don't, and you're eating in the truck sometimes. So it just depends. Um location of restrooms, I do also find personally important. So if you can know where those are, if they're available, make sure everybody knows. Also take this opportunity to cover again key employee policies like cell phone use and use of farm vehicles and equipment. So depending on the operation, I've seen it where they're not allowed to use cell phones if there's proprietary technology information and stuff there. So again, knowing what those are in advance and having agreed to that. So, and then again, like I said, the use of farm vehicles and equipment. Uh, for example, some, like I said, some operations have proprietary information that they may not allow cell phone use or phone use with cameras, work time and pay, that's a big one, right? We all want to get paid. Uh, it's important to set expectations up front regarding start times and our expectations. I also really say in the interview, you need to include this, but for sure, also on the first day, hammer it home, say it again and again. Include any seasonal variations and overtime in those expectations. Think calving and lambing seasons, right? Or if you have like haying season. So if you're doing hay or alfalfa or anything like that, those are some weird hours that you have to put in at certain times, right? Especially calving season, melee. Think about that. You know, that's a lot of time. But like, yeah, if you're farrowing or anything like that, you're gonna have to go check. Somebody's gonna have to check on those animals at two in the morning at some point. So you laugh, but it's because you know it's true. So again, make sure you're covering that, and so they know kind of what's expected in terms of pay during that time, things like that. Uh, those overtime, oh, and over basically cover any of those seasonal variations and overtime and those expectations. It's also a great time to cover call-in procedures and if there's any vacation and or sick leave, because the reality is at some point somebody's gonna get sick, something is gonna happen. So, how do we call in when we're sick or if an accident happens or something else, you know? So, what are those policies? How many days do we have if they if we do have those? Because that can vary widely from operation to operation. Uh, and then I would also set expectations at this time for feedback and performance reviews. Now, when we do that, this is where quite frankly, we're talking about the job, and here's where your job description, which we'll talk about how to create that a little later, uh, can come in handy. As you explain the procedures and tools for success, success in the position. Um, you can use things like organizational charts depending on how big the operation is. Sometimes that can give a new hire an idea of where to go to for questions. A lot of times we're just pretty horizontal and flat. So you're basically going to whoever your employer is. But again, if you need to clarify that, clarifying that with an organizational chart can help at times. Talk about any potential career paths on your operation, any additional training or certificates you may offer or allow them to go get again to help further them in their career goals. Highlighting success stories of employees who have moved into like advanced roles on the operation can also be a great motivator for new hires and encourage them to view the opportunity as a long-term career. I also say your philosophy about safety should be included at this point in time. Don't miss that step. I mean, I know you do some work in like farm farm safety melee, and a lot of people here do too, but like it is one of those things. It is just so easy for accidents to happen on the operation. So, really important step I say is to include to emphasize the importance of employee safety and well-being and create a culture of caring that makes a great impact. I approach farm safety from a standpoint of basically sincere, see sincerely caring about the individual and their health versus like a list of like, oh, these are like the federal regulations. So, as I kind of mentioned earlier when I was talking about again, the job, the job description is really important, but it includes basically four base things. Again, pretty simple, I think. But there are four main things you need: a title, a job summary, the outline of core duties, and then the necessary skills and experience. So, with the title, you want it to be something that captures the responsibilities of the position but doesn't limit the scope. And I know I sounds very like ephemeral when I'm saying this and like out there. For example, calf feeder or milker may be too narrow if other general farm duties are routinely expected. When you select a title, don't use potentially discriminatory terms such as hired man. Something like crop production team member is a better option. Next for the job summary, you want to give a concise description of the primary duties. This short description, which is generally one paragraph, builds on the job title and is used for recruiting purposes. Mention the work culture that you try to emulate on your operation and why an individual would want to work for you. So the next one is outlining the core duties. So you want to start with the most important duties, followed by those that may be performed less frequently. Bullet points are a great way to make these responsibilities stand out. Start bulleted sentences with active words such as operate, maintain, and perform versus weaker words such as assist or observe. Make sure to describe all primary day-to-day activities in this section indicating whom the role reports to can help candidates understand how the role fits into the overall operation. For example, take direction from the farm manager will let potential employees know how the day-to-day reporting structure works. Use current employees to develop this section of the job description if you can. They can give a lot of valuable input on tasks and responsibilities that should be included. Last but not least, you want to list necessary skills and experience. So this section basically should include knowledge, experience, education, and training necessary to perform the job. Must-have skills should be included with the word required. While it might be tempting to list every qualification you envision in an ideal candidate, too many responsibilities may discourage people from applying for it. If a skill would be nice to have but would not exclude potential candidates if they don't have it, you can use the word preferred. So, for example, truck driving experience required, CDL preferred. This section should include both hard skills and soft skills. Hard skills are technical requirements that are necessary to perform the job, such as operate a skid steer. Soft skills are behavioral or personality traits that could help an individual be successful in the role. Examples of soft skills are handle cattle calmly or work well with a team. Physical requirements should also be included. For example, the ability to lift 50 pounds routinely or position requires standing for long periods of time. So some additional tips for training and onboarding is generally there's a delay between accepting a job offer and an employee starting. So this can be a good time to get certain paperwork-related tasks done if possible, as well as share day one tasks and other instructions, as well as contact information. It's also a really good time to inform the rest of employees prior to that person starting. Also, again, if they have time and if they're available, introduction to the leadership team and key teammates, clarification of the name. The employee prefers to be known. Sometimes someone, like I said, their name is Charles, but they go by Charlie or Chuck. Uh, share those farm vision and mission statements if you have those and your farm values. Again, kind of review the offer letter on day one. What you really want to do is review that offer letter and clarify any questions. Talk about kind of those basic things, the location of the restrooms. Is there any personal storage areas or lockers? Again, depending on the operation, you may have some of that. Employee bulletin boards, again, where some of this information might even be stored. Uh, break areas, policy on personal cell phone use, company equipment and facilities. Uh, go over things like your work time and pay, what's your start time and your daily hour expectations, meal and break periods, because those are legally required in the U.S., overtime requirements or options, call-in procedures if they're unable to work or when expected. Uh, tardiness and absenteeism policy. A lot of operations don't necessarily have this written down, but it is actually really, again, as part of that onboarding and creating your standard operating procedures, having a lot of this stuff is really handy to have, again, written down somewhere available for people to look at. Uh, time card or timekeeping procedures, paycheck distribution, uh, when, where, and how that's done, the starting pay rate, including any incentive wages or bonuses, uh, relation of future pay increases to merit. How does that work? What's the pay scale jumps and bumps, longevity or other factors, any fringe benefits available? So, do you have some operations have 401k, some have dental, some have insurance, some have all the bells and whistles. Um, and then, like I said, procedures for using vacation sick or personal days, and then any sort of performance review and appraisal processes, those are really important to go through. Job duties and scope, review of the job description, tour of the farm operation and specific areas where employees will be working. Uh again, depending on the size of the operation, you might only be in one section of this operation. So, introduction to other team members, organizational structure. In the chain of command for questions or concerns. The again, that's standard operations, uh procedures and tools, so SOPs, uh, any job-specific performance expectations and work standards, product quality requirements or expectations, uh, potential career paths, so any promotional opportunities and anticipated time to achieve them if that's something they're interested in. As I always try and end it with, is farm safety philosophy. So all elements of the company injury and illness prevention program, pesticide safety training and equipment if it's applicable for the job, use and care of work equipment, uh, identification and location of workplace hazards, use, storage, and disposal of any hazardous chemicals, use of personal protective equipment, including clothes, footwear, respiratory, eye, and uh hearing protection. So, and that's just when you bring them on. Now you're actually trying to keep them long term. We have a lot of challenges with that. Some of the things we can do to meet those challenges are competitive compensation, right? Small town, a lot of small town businesses, rural businesses, farms and ranches may not have the budget to offer the same level of compensation and benefits as larger urban corporations. So that can sometimes make things a little bit more difficult. But again, honestly, having a solid like work culture is very helpful. A lot of them will do meals together. Sometimes they'll have housing options, depending on where you're living. Employees generally at these smaller operations will have uh stronger ties to the community a lot of times. They have a high level of company loyalty. Studies suggest that working for friends and neighbors and in a tight-knit network can contribute to enhanced commitment as well as, again, just enjoying the company culture and work. So a lot of times, uh, especially on our operations, and they're in smaller, more rural areas, right? So you get that small town living, so it offers benefits such as shorter commutes, lower cost of living, less traffic, and easy access to nature. Highlighting these aspects can attract employees seeking a better work-life balance. Employees can often see tangible impact of their work and contributions more directly in their small communities, right? Because these operations directly benefit the people they're with and around. So it can give a sense of purpose and local impact, can be a powerful motivator for long-term retention. What can you do? I think a lot of some of these operations actually do some of this already, right? Build a talent pipeline by collaborating with local high schools, colleges, and vocational schools. Offering scholarships, internships, and on-the-job training encourages young people to stay in their hometown after graduation. Offer flexibility, so provide flexible work arrangements and remote work options when possible. This can expand the talent pool by beyond the immediate geographical area and attract workers, prioritizing again, work-life balance, create a positive culture, so foster values-driven and foster a values-driven workplace that builds a strong sense of community and belonging among employees. You can also do things like, again, compensate for limited vertical movement by focusing on skills development, invest in training and mentorship programs and workshops to help employees grow professionally within their roles. So implement streamlined HR processes, including easy-to-use online applications and automated onboarding. Um, this can help a lot of smaller businesses and operations compete with larger companies that have some more resources.

SPEAKER_00:

Thank you, Shannon, so much for sharing all of that with us. I think it's such an important area that we don't really talk too much about. Of, you know, we talk about we need help, we need the labor, but not so much of how do we get it, how do we retain it, and how do we support those coming in. So I think it's important stuff that uh we all need to keep in mind, you know, when you start thinking about positions and, you know, how you can continue to support them. So hopefully our listeners found this informative uh and it'll be useful for them. Make sure to follow us on our social media pages, the Livestock Valal Livestock Extension Group, if you haven't already, and be sure to visit the UHC Tar Extension website and our YouTube channel listed in the show notes.

SPEAKER_01:

For additional information about this topic, see the show notes of the podcast and the description box of our YouTube page. Thanks for listening to the Livestock Val Al. Before we go, show some love for your favorite podcast by leaving us a review wherever you listen to this, and then stay tuned for the next episode.

SPEAKER_00:

Thanks again to our sponsors, the Livestock Extension Group of the University of Hawaii Manoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience, the Center for Agropability, and the University of Nebraska Lincoln, and the Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. Mahalo for listening.