In today’s competitive job market, dairies are struggling more than ever to find and retain qualified employees.
“Filling dairy labor needs always has been a challenge,” said Jorge Delgado, on-farm specialist for Alltech. “And today, with so many jobs open, we must compete with construction, landscaping, hotels, and restaurants – all industries that are vying for the same hard-working people.”
Jennifer Bentley, Extension dairy specialist for Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, recently discussed the needs and aspirations of dairy workers on Alltech’s AgFuture Podcast. She said for workers to be loyal and motivated, they must first feel that they are listened to, supported, and have a path for growth on the dairy.
Delgado added that many workers arrive on a dairy with low levels of education, yet they immediately have considerable performance expectations placed upon them.
Both experts acknowledged a high level of need for training resources to help improve the skills of dairy workers. As a result, Alltech and Iowa State Extension and Outreach, along with the University of Nebraska Dairy Extension, have partnered to create a free, eight-part series of online training modules, addressing various elements of milk quality.
Each module is presented in Spanish with English sub-titles, and includes a quiz at the end with printable certificates upon successful completion. Topics addressed include milking procedures; collecting milk samples; teat evaluation; and proper animal movement, among others.
And because the dairy worker pool is changing, with more languages and dialects than ever before, the training series relies heavily on visuals and animation to illustrate important concepts.
Bentley said providing effective procedural and safety training -- and making training a consistent part of a farm’s culture, versus an occasional one-off – is a critical element in providing the tools to dairy employees that empower them to do their jobs well.
In turn, Delgado said well-trained workers are more likely to feel invested in the business, offer feedback, and come up with solutions to problems.
“When you ask what it takes to build a successful dairy operation, a lot of people will talk about the genetics, the nutrition, and the facilities,” noted Delgado. “But in front of all of that, it comes down to people. To be truly successful, it’s all about the people behind the cows.”
