Employees Are Key to Success

Some call it people power, but whatever the term, human capital continues to be a significant challenge facing all of agriculture and the pork industry is no exception. A pork-industry panel led by moderator Don Tyler, Tyler & Associates, discussed the importance of securing a knowledgeable workforce today and in the future as a part of the movement toward responsible pork production.

Bill Hollis, DVM, Carthage Veterinary Services, Carthage, Ill, hires, monitors, trains and educates staff for pork producer clients. "Although we have many applicants for positions available, one of our challenges is the decrease in applicants who are interested and experienced in agriculture." The individual interested in agriculture is different from what it has been in the past, so employee training and development are increasingly critical.

Julie Maschhoff, Maschhoff Farms, talked specifically about the importance of human capital. "Despite the tremendous increase in technology available in pork production, it still comes down to people," she said. "The biggest change was learning how to delegate and assign jobs to our co-workers that we did ourselves in the past." Young people are going to other employers or leaving agriculture, and the pork industry has to offer secure benefits to compete for employees.

As the human resources manager of Indiana Packers, Shirley Maxwell manages 1,700 employees. She stressed the importance of training programs as well as communicating with employees. Compensation is also critical. "We need to keep ourselves competitive in wages within the meat industry," Maxwell said. For the entire panel, animal handling and food safety are priorities.