Case Study: Rolling out a Temporary Workforce
Business Issue
At one brand-name tire manufacturer, production ramps up and down with variable consumer demand. The company looked to temporary staffing as a strategy for building workforce flexibility and protecting its permanent staff from the fluctuations. However, to meet production goals, it needed a temporary workforce that mirrored its own staff in terms of quality and productivity.
Solution
For more than a decade, Manpower and the manufacturer have partnered on a comprehensive contingent workforce program driven by Manpower’s client site management. Manpower provides 40 to 50 industrial workers to staff four shifts, seven days a week. The manufacturer can drop down to 20 or increase to 70 Manpower associates as needed for production.
Manpower’s onsite manager provides constant management for the temporary workforce and expert understanding of the company’s hiring needs in order to place associates as machine operators, forklift drivers and other key positions. The onsite manager participates in daily production meetings to understand production requirements and priorities for the day and week.
To prepare Manpower associates for success on the job, Manpower’s onsite manager conducts an in-depth orientation, so new associates clearly understand job expectations and company culture, provides job-specific training as well as ongoing safety training, coaches associates daily on work priorities and the importance of being safety conscious, and manages an associate appreciation program and events.
Manpower’s onsite manager handles all of the administrative work associated with the company’s temporary workforce as well as monthly reporting and ongoing program reviews.
Results
The tire manufacturer consistently meets its production goals and can align its workforce costs more closely with production. Through Manpower’s client site management:
- Turnover has dropped by 60%.
- Absenteeism is less than 1.5%.
- Manpower associates have an integral role on the manufacturer’s production line, which demonstrates the partnership’s success.