Tips on staff management from 4 dairy farmers

Dairy farmers could be facing a worsening labour shortage on UK farms post-Brexit, with 56% of farmers employing people from the EU.

The findings of the RABDF survey show the sector needs to maintain crucial access to workers from European countries.

However, deeper-rooted problems within the sector mean the industry must become much better at selling itself as an attractive place to work to young people and those outside the sector.

See also: Certification and staff training – all you need to know

Speaking at LIC’s Pasture to Profit conference in Birmingham on Tuesday 16 October, four dairy farmers gave their tips on staff recruitment and management.

1. Learn to delegate responsibility and accept people are not perfectionists

“If you are a perfectionist, it’s hard to employ people. I thought people would do things the way I wanted them done. I learned the hard way.”

Robert Craig said at the beginning he really struggled to give people responsibility, too.

A wealth-creation course in 2007 was a “game-changer” and helped him clearly understand and realise one of his goals, which was to have more time off from the farm.  

“I haven’t milked cows since 2010 and that has allowed me to choose how I spend my time,” says Mr Craig, who sits on the council for RABDF.

2. Sell yourself to prospective employees

A lot of farm job adverts don’t really tell you about the job, says Mr Craig, who researched lots of paper advertisements before recruiting for six vacancies.

He says that the salary should be advertised and that farmers need to get better at “selling the job”.

His business set up a trainee dairy scholarship, which gives a young person £1,000 to travel to New Zealand and work on a dairy farm for one year.

“It’s about getting really good experience. Whether or not we retain them in our business is not really an issue, because we have good people being retained within the industry.”

Meanwhile, the Haltons offer a £500 incentive for employee recommendations, providing the person stays for a minimum of six months.

They also provide weekly massages from a therapist for staff.

3. Get rid of bad apples swiftly

Get rid of poor performers swiftly, before they infect “the rest of the cart”, advises Karen Halton, who was previously the director of a London-based legal recruitment consultancy.

The Haltons have a three-month probation period for new staff, and if work slips after this they work closely with an HR firm and give staff written warnings.

“Quite often everyone is on their best behaviour during probation but can become stale afterwards. I watch and home in on that person, and every time we have a slip-up I try to manage it.”

4. Don’t take it personally

It’s easy to take it personally when staff don’t turn up to work, for example, because living on the farm can make it more personal.

But remember: you are running a business and it happens in other industries, advises Mrs Halton.

5. Be flexible with working hours

Richard Smith reckons moving to once-a-day milking has helped his family’s dairy business attract more staff.

“It makes it much more viable for people looking for a part-time job. This immediately broadens your pool of people.”

Mr Smith employs four milkers part time and they do an average of four to five hours a day.

Milking starts at 7.30am and is more flexible than twice-a-day start times – and can be fitted in around school pick-ups, he adds.

6. Communicate with staff

Chris North believes keeping all employees in the loop is a key management technique.

“When we walk the grass, we all walk together; it’s a good time to talk and we can discuss the grass there and then.”

He says regular catch-ups throughout the day also enable him to get a feel of how everyone’s day has gone.