Richard Wright says it’s easy to find local people to work as technicians in the 11 farrow-to-finish hog barns his company manages in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
But the general manager of the Quadra Group is looking for two managers right now, and it seems to be taking longer than usual to fill the positions.
“Maybe there’s just not very many people available any more,” he said.
The hog industry is turning its attention to the people needed to fuel the anticipated explosion in hog production on the Prairies.
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In Manitoba alone, some estimate 1,200 people will be needed to work in hog barns over the next five years if production doubles to six million hogs per year.
There are about 50 openings, said Marcel Hacault, chair of Manitoba Pork’s human resources committee. It’s an employee’s market.
In the past, hog barns were smaller and were run by the farmers who owned them. But many of the new barns are owned by investors who need to find a manager, at least four or five full-time workers and some part-time staff.
Managing a hog barn is a relatively new career choice, explained Hacault. The manager has to be able to keep both pigs and people happy, two very different sets of skills.
Salaries range from $7 per hour for new technicians to $30,000 to $50,000 a year for managers, plus bonuses based on production.
Hacault has heard of one manager who makes $80,000 a year. He said there’s also raiding going on between barns as operations raise the stakes to get the best possible manager.
“I would say that one of the major stumbling blocks for a lot of the newer barns going up is to find competent swine care workers,” he said.
Terry Betker agrees. He’s an independent consultant with Canstar Project Development Group Ltd. who helps investors develop hog barns from concept to cash flow.
“Will we get to a point where some barns don’t proceed because they don’t have good management? I don’t know, I don’t think so,” Betker said.
But he does foresee situations where profits aren’t as good as they could be because of management.
Betker explained most large barns are leveraged as high as possible. It makes sense to borrow money at seven percent interest when returns can be 15 percent or greater.
But to get those returns, talented managers have to keep sows turning out piglets. If a barn’s business plan calls for 21 or 22 pigs per sow per year, but production ends up at 17 or 18, the barn will have cash flow problems, said Betker.
“If you borrow all the money you can, and your production doesn’t match your projections, then of course you’ve got those high debt commitments you have to meet,” he explained.
Betker’s firm and other consultants offer management training to hog barns.
Wright said Quadra helps interested technicians get more training so they can eventually become managers.
In Manitoba, two colleges offer swine care courses. An industry-wide group is working with similar groups in Alberta and Saskatchewan on a course for hog barn managers. Hacault estimates at least 300 people from each of the three provinces could take it over the next five years.
Importing employees is another option. Some people have come from Atlantic provinces to work in hog barns, said Hacault.
Betker said there are a lot of experienced people in the Netherlands who are interested in coming to Manitoba, but the trick is to match employees with employers.
The federal and provincial governments have fast-tracked temporary working visas for Dutch managers who find jobs in Manitoba. They can get approval within a month.
Betker knows of two Manitoba companies who have taken advantage of the program.
Manitoba Pork is also tackling the shortage by making young people aware of the new opportunities. The agency is taking a brochure and video to career fairs, and lists job openings on its website www.manitobapork.com.
Hacault said correcting an old image problem is key to attracting new people.
“If you look back at how you perceive hog barns, it’s probably slopping the pigs and cleaning the manure out every day,” he said.
But barns today are clean and modern, involve teamwork and technology, and pay better, he said.
