I hesitate to write this post on a Wednesday.... Call me Superstitious. But yesterday was a pretty good day at Haribo. And really, it was nothing spectacular. I would dare to say "Normal". It was busy and challenging and "fun." No major catastrophes. No looming disasters. Just a fun day picking up and moving Gummies from the Packaging floor to the Warehouse.
It took a while to get the hang of things when I first started. Mostly because everyone was "in their own little bubble" and did not want to show anyone anything. I'm not sure what the motivation was about that... But I could speculate a couple of reasons.
One: Job security. No one wanted to show you what they did for fear you would take their job. Or actually be better at it. There were a number of people who liked what they did and did not want to "share" the specific area of expertise. I find this strange, because it is not some magical or mystic "art"... It's driving a fork truck around and moving stuff! But those people liked their small world and did not want to share it with anyone.
Two: Lack of team work. Who wants to team up with someone who sucks? And if they are slow or dangerous or are just a jerk ( difficult to deal with) you would rather just leave them alone and keep to yourself. This means there was not a lot of cross-training going on. If the guys in the back were getting slammed... The guys in front would not help. There was a feeling of "It's their problem, let them deal with it!" The same went the other way. If the front was getting hammered with Gummmies, the Back would just drive around in the back or park near the Passerella. 
Three: Old Dudes! Yes, several of the guys were "Old Guys" stuck in their way. "Everyone needs to pull their own weight!" Hurry up and learn the job so you can actually be helpful. Otherwise you are just dead weight! There is also the part of being old in that they did not want to learn another area. They had "mastered" their area of the warehouse/factory... And did not feel the need to learn anything else. Why would I start at the bottom when it took me this long to get to where I am now. No thanks! I'll stay here and be productive. "You can't teach an old dog new tricks!" (A Motto I dislike.)
Four: Turn over. Why teach a new guy anything when they are bound to leave within a couple of months anyway? I understand this mentality. I trained a couple of young guys and they were GREAT! But both eventually got fired for stupid stuff and that feeling of starting over with someone new is disheartening. Still, while they were there, we had a force multiplier every time they would punch in and be asked to jump on a fork truck to help out.
When I first started, Phil was my contact. ( remember Phil?) I thought he would be my "trainer" but he was permanently in the "front" pushing gummies around. To hear him, you would think that that was the "most challenging and important" job at Haribo. You had to know which lines needed what gummies. When to bring them. And how many of each to keep the lines running.... Sounded "impossible" for all but the elite.
But it turns out, it is not that difficult. In fact, I would say it is fairly easy. There are rarely any disasters. ( Broken Pallets, Stuck AGV's, Broken Passerella, Crowded floors...) Mostly it is "steady" work. You pick up the special pallets of gummies that come from the Production floor, Weigh them, and either bring them to a line or store them in a lane. As the night goes on and the Moguls slow or stop, you bring the gummies from the storage lanes to the lines that need them. Actually kind of straight forward!
It can be a challenge when the Moguls are kicking out the gummies and the Lines are down. Then there is a race to get the gummies in trays and find enough areas to store them. And those days there is the risk of running out of trays if there are a LOT of gummies. But the factory is getting better and dropping just enough gummies at just the right pace so the lines can keep up. It is a growth thing.
Now, We have a pretty good team on Second shift. Three of us Material Handlers came in the same "class". And we replaced, Phil and Josia. (Both went to first shift) Gary and Alahandro are gone, Jose and Roland are gone. Slowly creating the spaces for the current team to set up together.
I know there is usually a reason for First Shift leaving us a disaster whenever we get on the floor. The first two to three hours are usually spent running around trying to clean up their mess. But... First Shift is usually the busiest. And if they are short handed, then things can get out of control fairly quickly. But that is why they have all the "seasoned veterans" on that shift... to be able to handle those issues as they arise.
But first shift also has the "Premedonas" on their shift. The Karens, The Old Dudes. They people who are stuck in their ways and refuse to help anyone outside their areas. Basically, they are what second shift used to be like. And the results are pretty obvious... at least to us as Material Handlers.
I'm not sure when we, as a society, stopped trying to help each other and focused solely on "making sure my stuff is right" If the entire boat is sinking, you all better start bailing... Even if the leak is on the other side of the boat. I wonder why no one sees that...
Haribo is a Great Company! And I think, as with all jobs, who you work with can make or break it. A good crew of people can make the job fun and exciting. I look forward to going to work every day!
---- Intermission!----
I just got back from Work! (I could not finish writing all of this in the morning....) And, as predicted, We Got Slammed!
It was a "tougher than usual" day today. Busy! And a couple of minor disasters. Cory, Patrick and I all dropped double stacked pallets! Those Goldbears from German are in very weak boxes and stacked poorly. ( Sure! Blame the Boxes!)
The Passerella was down... twice! And first shift left us a mess! We only have 4 material handlers now that Alex is gone.... So there are not many options for coverage when things get out of control.
But! We pulled together and made it happen. Mario Cleared the floor and the returns while taking care of the AGV's and I covered the back when I could to help him. Tino ran the front solo most of the night and Elsa worked on Boxes and materials for the lines. It was a good night.. Despite the Minor Hiccups!
And so on the way out today, I was chatting with another guy and we both got on the topic of the day and the little problems that had to be dealt with. And we both agreed that we still enjoy the job and the people we work with. It was actually reassuring, after feeling a little down about messing up a couple of times tonight. Turns out, everyone else had problems too! But in the end, they would still choose to come back to work with the rest of us.
And that is a wonderful "culture" to work for. I know it is just a job. But if you have to spend 8 hours a day at some place that it not home, you might as well make it fun and enjoyable while you are there. And it helps if the people you work with are equally fun to work with. Haribo's Motto is : Childlike Happiness. I will continue to pray that that never changes and Haribo stays with us a for a very long time. All while we try to make every second count.
No comments:
Post a Comment