Young’s slashes agency staffing bill

Seafood processor Young’s Bluecrest has saved more than £2m in direct costs alone through a groundbreaking HR project that has slashed staff turnover, cut absenteeism and enabled the company to dramatically reduce its use of agency staff.

HR Director Stephen Swire said: “It all started a couple of years ago when we were looking at ways of motivating staff at our three sites in Grimsby, developing our people, driving factory efficiency and tackling absenteeism. We explored lots of options and decided that upskilling was the way forward.”

The project was in three parts, he said.

“First, we got more than 1,000 staff up to NVQ level 2 in food and drink manufacturing with the Grimsby Institute of Further Education and the Humberside Institute of Fisheries and Foods, covering areas including basic health and safety and food hygiene.

“Then, we focused on the next level of management and got supervisors and line managers through NVQ level 3 in food and drink manufacturing. We have also got people studying for foundation degrees covering project management, technical management, general management and manufacturing management.

“Finally, we reviewed our benefits package,” he said. This included initiatives such as offering discounts on high-street store vouchers for employees.

The results speak for themselves, said Swire. “Non-attendance is down 2%, staff turnover is in single figures, productivity has gone up significantly, our health and safety performance has improved and we are saving £2m a year purely through reduced use of agency staff.”