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Did I really employ a junior?
This is my latest blog post on our website. I've received quite a bit of flak about it which has been interesting to see how my generalisations have been taken to extremes.
Have you ever employed a junior and wondered what on earth you were thinking? Well, so have we. If you are a small business or a one man band where 40 hour supervision is not possible, listen to others when they say "Don't Do It".
Small business owner culture depicts a person who is hard working, dedicated and passionate about their product or service. A junior employee has no concept of this, so once again "Don't Do It".
So if they don't fit with us, then who do they fit with? Well, big companies with HR divisions and dedicated supervisors. Somewhere where they can learn and make mistakes with the 40 hour a week support that they require. Not only that, they will be sitting in a large organisation with many others that have a job where the concept of small business hard work and passion does not exist. Be fair to junior's they need a lot of encouragement and support and they won't get it with small business.
If you are thinking to cut costs, think again. A junior will cost you approximately $1500 per week to start off. Thats wages, your management, compliance etc. Not to mention stress.
Compare that with an on-demand skilled contractor who can work an average of 9 times more efficiently than a junior, you could pay as little as $200 per week including GST. Makes sense doesn't it.
Have you ever employed a junior and wondered what on earth you were thinking? Well, so have we. If you are a small business or a one man band where 40 hour supervision is not possible, listen to others when they say "Don't Do It".
Small business owner culture depicts a person who is hard working, dedicated and passionate about their product or service. A junior employee has no concept of this, so once again "Don't Do It".
So if they don't fit with us, then who do they fit with? Well, big companies with HR divisions and dedicated supervisors. Somewhere where they can learn and make mistakes with the 40 hour a week support that they require. Not only that, they will be sitting in a large organisation with many others that have a job where the concept of small business hard work and passion does not exist. Be fair to junior's they need a lot of encouragement and support and they won't get it with small business.
If you are thinking to cut costs, think again. A junior will cost you approximately $1500 per week to start off. Thats wages, your management, compliance etc. Not to mention stress.
Compare that with an on-demand skilled contractor who can work an average of 9 times more efficiently than a junior, you could pay as little as $200 per week including GST. Makes sense doesn't it.
Tags: employment, outsourcing
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Lisa MacFarlane on -
Thanks for sharing. I agree though - it's a lot cheaper to hire a professional for a couple of hours than someone who would be able to learn how to do it over a longer period. A friend of mine always says "If you think it's expensive to hire a professional, try hiring an amateur".
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Permalink Reply by Tanya Nissen on -
Can completely understand what you are saying to some extent. However I will jump to the defence of some of the young school leavers I have assisted into jobs.
I have met some awesome young people who are very motivated and it has been a delight to watch them grow and settle into their jobs. The organisation that I work for assists school leavers into their first job and mentors and supports them through their first year of employment. This mentoring is crucial for these young people as many of the issues that employers have about employing young people can easily be dealt with by an independent person.
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Permalink Reply by Trevor Jones on
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Hi,
We had a Junior person working at our company (21). Within the first 3 weeks they had a nearly a whole week of with sick leave.
Very effiecient at her job but ATD was shocking. Never hire another 21 year old as their responsibilities are totally different than someone who has had at least 4-5 years expereince.
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Permalink Reply by Linda Fraser on -
Would probably also largely depend on the industry. In my industry, it would be difficult for clients to trust that a youth could do the job. Also, they would expect to be charged at a lower rate for a junior, so the cost saving would not really come into it, my profit margin would just drop. However, if Youth were my target market, having a young person on the team may have it's advantages. Their 'take' on things can add a different perspective to your business. Really assessing how much time you have to put into training them and being clear on what your expectations are is probably the main thing. Don't wait until you are so busy that you haven't got the time to put into it - the advantage of the junior is that they don't have to be 'untaught' anyone elses bad habits! They can just be taught your bad habits! LOL. But the reality also is that they are probably not there for the long haul, so you have to weigh it all up!
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