Robotics Can Help 3PLs Reduce Turnover and Attract Talent
Turnover rates for warehouse and storage workers remain significantly higher than in other sectors. According to recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, annual churn in transportation, warehousing and utilities is currently around 43%.
Among recruiting, interviewing, training, lost productivity, and other factors, replacement cost estimates range from 16 to 25% of a worker’s annual salary. To make matters worse, multiple research studies and industry reports continue to show that many warehouse workers are willing to switch jobs for an hourly pay increase of as little as 25 to 50 cents.
But money isn’t the only factor that attracts good people and convinces them to stick around. According to our latest Warehouse Vision Study, today’s warehouse workers are looking for employers willing to invest in automation tools that help them work smarter, safer and faster.
In this post, we’ll explore how the Zebra Symmetry™ Fulfillment ecosystem satisfies all these desires and more by simplifying tasks, improving accuracy, and enhancing productivity.
Warehouse Workers See Technology as a Strategic Ally
Technology isn’t replacing the warehouse workforce; it’s empowering it. Nearly three-fourths of warehouse associates say they spend too much time on repetitive, manual tasks that could be automated. Inspired by the technology they rely on in their daily lives, they welcome solutions that help them meet or exceed productivity goals while reducing physical strain and preventing injuries.
Key findings from our latest Warehouse Vision Study support the importance today’s workers place on automation technology:
Although these trends aren’t new, it’s notable that support — and even demand — for technology-driven solutions is growing among warehouse associates:
These responses and others from the study suggest tech-savvy employers have a steadily increasing edge when it comes to attracting and retaining skilled workers. They also correlate closely with the opinions of industry decision-makers, who face growing pressure to modernize warehouse operations.
Enhancing Worker Productivity, Agency and Satisfaction
Compared to other automation solutions, autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) are often a more practical choice for third-party logistics (3PL) operations because of their flexibility, scalability and ease of implementation. They also help to encourage employee satisfaction and retention by reducing the time and effort needed to meet productivity targets.
Any well-designed AMR system will reduce the amount of walking and physical labor required from picking associates. Zebra Symmetry™ Fulfillment builds on these advantages with the unique Team Intelligence methodology. Lightweight, ergonomic wearable computers and ring scanners make workers agents in the system. This enables a precise, directed workflow for both pickers and robots, delivering multiple benefits:
- Optimized pick paths — known as “tours”, minimize walking and enable smarter, denser runs
- No waiting — there’s never a picker without a robot or vice versa
- No guesswork — the right robot is always waiting exactly where it’s needed; pickers don’t need to waste time searching for it
- Easy worker feedback — if an item is missing or there’s some other issue (e.g., an item is on a shelf too high for a picker to reach), the picker can report an exception and keep going, potentially improving future pick tours
Everyone benefits from the Team Intelligence methodology. It helps workers pick more items in less time and with less effort, while improving throughput and reducing your cost per unit.
Empowered Workers Stick Around (and Tell Their Friends)
By optimizing the performance of both robots and human workers, Zebra Symmetry Fulfillment and the Team Intelligence methodology are helping to create advanced, modern workplaces that attract and retain good people. Wearable technology and directed workflows improve morale and retention without sacrificing speed, service levels and reliability.
To learn more about the proven labor benefits 3PLs can achieve, plus other ways technology can unlock greater profitability in your operation, check out our recently released e-book: Automation: Your Strategic Advantage.
