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And here we are, week 12 of 2021. Some of my peers are in awe that the year is moving this fast while others think it’s creeping along. I’m feeling like time is moving at an incredible pace. Maybe it’s just that I’m trying to get so much done in a week!
Well, enough of all that, I guess. So, I had a question, more of a comment really, a comment that, well, maybe many of us would have spouted out when placed in the same position. Shoot, I forgot the introductions! I’m Marty with Warehouse and Operations as a Career with you here tonight. I’m in Texas, the Dallas area actually, and we’re having some of those famous Texas storms here. I hope the audio is alright and I’m able to get it recorded! Now I’ve lost my bullet points! Ok, so back to that question that was more like a comment! Here’s the short story.
An associate, an order selector actually. An hourly order selector, in his position or at his facility everyone wears a couple of different hats. He is one of about 7 order selectors, or order pickers. Anyway, his company is getting ready for an audit, one of those industry guidelines audits, so there are a lot of procedures and processes being written or improved upon. Now this facility is kept really clean to begin with. I’ve always been impressed with how neat and orderly they keep the truck yard. It’s probably around 250,000 square feet. And they’re really good about keeping all the bollard post, the parking light guards, and the doorways painted and looking sharp! Back to the comment I received, that’s kind of the whole point of the story!
Anyway, this order selector was asked to grab the touch up paint cans and paint or cover up any scratches on all the equipment. His comment was, and you may have already guessed where I’m heading now, his comment was that that’s not my job. Well, I’m not his boss, and I don’t work with him, but you can probably guess how I feel about that statement.
I’ve always felt like I work for the company. Our checks, or usually, our checks doesn’t say, order selector, or painter, or sweeper, or trash compactor cleaner on them. But I’ve been all those guys before. I was being paid by the hour and I always looked at it as my job was to do what was asked for that hour.
Now yes, there are generally exceptions. The request needs to be legal of course and not go against any of my training. And if I was on a pay incentive program or paid by the case program, I’d bring up my pay upon hearing the request. But if I’m hourly, it’s really my job, right?
Another painting story really quick. So a pedestrian walkway needed to be re-painted in a warehouse. It didn’t need to be laid out, the old lines were already there, easily seen and perfectly fine to be traced over. The Supervisor even stated, just do the best you can. I don’t want to remove the old or sandpaper them away, just clean it up and spray over them and next year we’ll restripe them properly. The associate that was asked to perform the task was a long-term employee. He quit; he was very angry that his boss had asked him to do it instead of one of the new boots.
I spoke with his supervisor about it and asked if he had shared why, he had been the chosen one. He said no that he didn’t speak to the employee. He had another person direct him to do it and that he of course was going to reach out to him later that day. I get to use that communication word again today. Another good warehouseperson resigned or lost their job because, we as employees, sometimes jump before thinking things through!
Here’s one I’ll never understand. So, a gentleman gave truck driving a try. Worked hard, earned his CDL or commercial license and went out on the road. As we’ve discussed here at WAOC a few times, those local delivery or route positions can be hard to come by until we’ve acquired a few years of experience. He went out on the road for almost a year. It just wasn’t really for him. It wasn’t working out for his family. But this story, at least up to this point has a good ending. Upon coming off the road he landed a good job as a lead for an unloading or lumper company. He loved the physical aspect of unloading and being a lead. He already had his eyes on a supervisor position.
Well, his boss knew he had some driving and backing experience. One night their spotter called in sick. He was asked to go help out for the shift. Now, he’d been asked 3 or 4 times before to help fill in or to go out and catch them up, so he knew the ropes. His answer tonight was no. He stated that he did not want to go out and help, grabbed his lunch and walked away.
How about operating a sweeper/ scrubber unit? If any of you are trained on that machine, I’m sure you, I’ll say, dislike having to operate it right. It’s not hard, or complicated, but it takes time to do it right. As you know, first we have to drive it across all the docks, down the aisles, being sure to get up against the pallet line, sweeping up all the dirt and dust. And heaven forbit our team mates failed to pick up the larger pallet pieces or empty cardboard boxes and slip sheets because then we’ve got to get off the machine and move the obstacle out of the way!
Then the scrubbing, man, that has to be done super slow, and squeegeeing up our water trails! Not my favorite task.
So, an order selector had spilt some gallon cases of vinegar, I think it was 6 cases of 4/1 gallon at the end of the night. The sanitation crew had already entered the aisles working the slots. Theye’d already swept and scrubbed the endcap area where the spill had occurred. His supervisor asked that he go get on the unit and scrub up his mess. He was trained and certified to operate it. I think he was formally a backup operator now that I’m thinking about it. Anyway, about 20 minutes later when everyone went looking for him, he was gone. Punched out and left! His supervisor had to go scrub it up. It took him 24 minutes. This gentleman quit his job of 3 years over a 24-minute task. By the way, he was an hourly employee with production pay. There we’re no more cases to pull so everything would have been over time I was told.
We named this episode this that and the other because that is our jobs. I was asked by a sales associate at one of our customers this week what my job was. She said I see you out here with people in the office, walking around in the warehouse and visiting with safety and dispatch all the time. I told her It’s my job to make her job easier! I visit with a few of your departments to help expediate your inbound and outbound and make sure our people are helping in a safe and productive manner! She grinned, thanked me and went on!
But isent that what our jobs are. Distribution is inbound, storage and shipping. Manufacturing is the inbound of raw goods, turning them into other products and shipping them to Production facilities to make something out of them! I know, I simplified things a bit there but, that’s it right?
I know we each have our own task to perform or to get done. But, if we are that employee that wants to do more, go further and earn more money then we understand that our job is to do this that and the other.
I’ve been asked to do something on goals. Let me know how you’d like that to be presented. I’d be happy to put something together and post it on our website for a free download, oh, or maybe a free recorded webinar? Email us at host@warehouseandoperationsasacareer.com and let me know if you’d like it through the podcast or something free on the website!
I hope I at least made a point today. I know I was just kind of rambling but, gosh, our jobs are a job. We’re paid to be there, yes of course we’re hired to our skill but, our jobs are that and this and the other!
Until next week, keep an open mind, be that person willing to do that and this, and above everything else, be safe. See ya next week!