Ag Retailers Adopting a ‘Proactive Lifestyle’ When It Comes to Labor
February 12, 2024 There’s an old adage that says, “if you want something done, do it yourself!” Apparently, some ag retailers in 2024 are starting to adopt this kind of proactive philosophy in their businesses — particularly when it comes to labor.
For as long as I can remember, the problem of finding and retaining quality workers at the ag retail level of the business has remained a continual one. In fact, during our annual ranking of the nation’s top ag retailers this past December, labor concerns going into the 2024 growing season remained the No. 1 issue among CropLife 100 companies, cited by 34% of respondents. This was almost 10% higher than the next major concern on the list (price volatility) and on par with the 10-year average for labor issues at 40%. Typical comments from CropLife 100 respondents regarding labor woes ranged from generic ones such as “finding quality workers is our No. 1 concern” to more extreme examples like “we’ve had at least a half-dozen jobs open for over one year now without any takers!”
And if anything, this problem finding employees is only expected to get worse in the years to come. In fact, many ag retailers report that the most historically reliable segment of their workforces — Baby Boomers — are quickly retiring from the ag retail industry. Convincing subsequent generations of employees that working long hours and in sometimes harsh outdoor conditions has been a struggle, say virtually all ag retailers that have spoken with CropLife magazine over the years on this subject.
Furthermore, this problem of finding workers goes beyond just working at the ag retail outlets or in grower-customer crop fields. According to government statistics, the shortage of workers that hold commercial driver licenses (CDLs) to move products across the country is expected to be between 50,000 and 100,000 over the next few years. This is part of the reason trade groups such as the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) have been lobbying Congress to lower the age restrictions on CDLs to move across state lines.
Thankfully, it seems as if many of the nation’s largest ag retailers have decided to take a more proactive approach to finding new hires. At the 2023 ARA Annual Meeting and Convention, I was pleasantly surprised to have numerous company representatives come up to me to talk about labor concerns, with several of them telling me about their fledgling in-house programs to recruit new workers. Some have started CDL training programs for new drivers. Others have expanded their long-standing internship programs by working with local community and technical colleges to identify potential workers that could want to work in agriculture long-term. Looking for more experienced help, one ag retail has even implemented a program with its local Army base to identify retirees that might want a second career in ag retail once their military careers have ended.
In theory, all of these efforts should produce results. And with luck, when ag retailers are asked about their major concerns going into the next year, labor won’t be as prominent.
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