Employee TurnoverResearch has shown that most diesel repair shops are having difficulty finding and keeping good employees. This presents many problems for a repair shop. It forces owners to work longer hours and in other areas of the business just to get jobs done. This prevents the owner from doing the important work of managing and growing the business.

The biggest problem associated with employee turnover is the cost. Employee turnover lowers profits, reduces quality, slows production, and causes missed opportunities due to the lack of highly trained and experienced staff. It isn’t possible to grow the business unless you have the people to do the work.

Consider this: you have jobs coming in the shop, but not enough technicians to complete them in a timely manner. So you either push jobs and delivery back to get the work, or you turn them down because you don’t have enough qualified technicians to perform the repairs.

While your competitors may be in the same boat, many customers will be swift to replace you because they believe a competitor will give them faster results and you’ll lose their business.

Employee Turnover Costs can range from $12,000 to $20,000 per person!

Research states that the average cost to replace an employee is 30% to 50% of their annual salary. The cost of recruiting adds another $2,000+. It is clear when it comes to managing people that the current system is broken. This creates a critical need for an effective new model to create dedicated and motivated employees for the long-term. When you lose a good employee, you not only lose their knowledge and production skills, you incur substantial costs to hire and train another person to get to their level of expertise. Overall, it is cheaper to retain and invest in your current employees than it is to replace them.

Solving the Employee Turnover Problem

Diesel repair shops are facing a dilemma in their ability to hire, train, inspire, and retain an effective and loyal employee base in a cost effective way.

As the U.S. economy strengthens, and the job market improves, employee turnover rate will climb higher. This is because people will feel more secure in leaving their current job to find a better opportunity. That means retaining good employees is critical, because as jobs come back, the pool of quality people available to perform them will diminish.

The solution to reducing employee turnover is to develop a customized employee retention system for your repair shop that:

  • Creates a change in attitude within your shop that cultivates excellence in your employees;
  • Redefines how you recruit, develop, and reestablish the value of entry level people;
  • Produces a high ROI;
  • Provides work/life balance for employees;
  • Encourages employee input on shop issues;
  • Provides regular, constructive feedback on employee performance;
  • Solves problems through systems analysis and innovation;
  • And builds your work force by installing into your environment the importance of starting where you are, learning the skills needed to get to the next level, and having an attitude of a better opportunity to grow.

Perhaps the most important thing a shop owner can do is to regularly check in with employees about their level of satisfaction and listen to their concerns. Satisfied, engaged employees are more likely to stay with your shop, rather than leave you for a competitor that may not demonstrate that level of commitment to them.

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