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Waste & Recycling January 21, 2019 04:30:32 AM

Labor Shortage Prompts Haulers to Think Outside the Box

Waste Advantage
ScrapMonster Author
In an effort to fill some of the holes in its workforce, about 10 years ago, Action employed the services of New York-based Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO).

Labor Shortage Prompts Haulers to Think Outside the Box

SEATTLE (Waste 360): The growing labor shortage across the waste and recycling industry has caused some hiccups for collection services in some areas of the country.

Take Houston, for instance, where the city’s fleet management department has been forced to pull nearly three dozen collection trucks off the road due to maintenance problems. Many of the fleet’s aging trucks—some 15 years old—are in need of repairs, but there aren’t enough technicians on hand to fix them.

As a result, many residential trash and recycling bins are overflowing and have been sitting out for days, according to the Houston Chronicle. And because of the nationwide truck driver shortage, since mid-November, when collection delays really picked up in Houston, city sanitation employees have clocked in around $948,000 in overtime pay.

In order to keep up with their regular collection schedules during this shortage, haulers will have to think outside the box when it comes to recruiting new employees and retaining the talent they already have. Though there is a general shortage of applicants within the labor pool, filling positions for commercial driver’s license (CDL) drivers and technicians present the greatest challenges for waste and recycling companies.

Ron Bergamini, chief executive officer of Action Environmental Services, which provides waste management services for New York’s five boroughs and Northern New Jersey, explains that the more skilled the position, the harder it is to hire people.

“Finding people who are qualified is the biggest challenge,” he tells Waste360. “New York poses a problem in that so much of the work, mainly with the drivers and helpers, is done at night. So, while there is a truck driver shortage all over the country, now it’s compounded with the fact that you have to work at night in tough conditions.”

In an effort to fill some of the holes in its workforce, about 10 years ago, Action employed the services of New York-based Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO). CEO works to provide people returning from prison immediate paid employment, skills training and ongoing career support.

After overcoming the initial reluctance of hiring people who were formerly incarcerated, Bergamini says the company has had continued success with the program. Over the last decade, Action has hired around 140 to 150 people through CEO.

Courtesy: https://waste360.com

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