Page 61: of Maritime Logistics Professional Magazine (Q3 2015)

60 62

SHIPYARD LABOR

Contingent

Skilled

Labor:

A means for Shipyards to decrease labor-related costs and economically meet ongoing production challenges.

By Joseph Keefe midst global energy uncertainties and the challenges of keeping new and existing tonnage on the water

Aand working, shipyards continue here at home with the business at hand. The good news is that workloads in the commercial and government shipbuilding sectors are holding steady. On the other hand, the downside includes an unques- tionable skilled workforce shortage. Industry and maritime businesses continue to have dif? culties ? nding tenured, quali- ? ed trades for the work at hand. Finding, attracting and keep- ing those skilled workers is at best, a daunting task.

Workplace Realities

A recent U.S. Department of Labor study that suggests three to four tenured craftsmen are exiting the workplace for ev- ery one new individual entering the trades. Human Resource acquisition professionals in shipbuilding and repair facilities experience this predicament daily and are conservatively in- terviewing four or more candidates just to ? nd the one indi- vidual who meets their project trade speci? cations. For weld- ers, who must meet highly exacting quality standards, it’s not uncommon to hire just one out of every 10 candidates who walk through the door.

Obviously, as the challenge to ? nd yard-ready craft candi- dates grows, so do expenditures related to attracting quali? ed trades to business. There are the expenses for job board post- ings, print want ads, social media efforts and referral or sign-on bonuses. Then there are costs associated with screening appli- cants, reference checking and interviewing. When combined www.maritimeprofessional.com Maritime Professional 61| | 50-63 Q3 MP2015.indd 61 9/18/2015 11:11:55 AM