Warehouse workers keep products moving

By Rebecca Maitland, CORRESPONDENT

Published

11:00 pm CST, Saturday, January 18, 2020

Every company that sells products has a warehouse. The larger the company, usually the larger the warehouse, and these warehouses are in need of staff.

Depending on size, every warehouse usually has a host of different positions including shipping and receiving, document controls, receptionist, stockers, general assistants, warehouse assistants, and others.

Salaries for these jobs differ from company to company and warehouse to warehouse, but usually start around $14 an hour and up. Many of these jobs also offer benefits.

Warehouse workers are in demand in and around Houston, which is evident just by searching online for “warehouse jobs.”

Moreover, Home Depot, one of the largest home improvement stores in the country, is hiring.

“We are currently hiring for about 50 (warehouse) position in the Houston area. We do not require specific skills or certifications but prefer applicants who have general warehouse experience. We offer on-the-job training, including forklift certification for warehouse associates,” said Margaret W. Smith, spokesperson for Home Depot.

Retail has changed more in the past four years than in Home Depot’s previous 40 years.

“A best-in-class supply chain is critical for our business and Home Depot will eventually reach about 90% of our customers with next day/same day delivery. It’s an exciting time to work at The Home Depot and an especially exciting time to work in supply chain, where you are helping to build the future of delivery in home improvement retail,” Smith said.

Kelly Services, one of the leaders in employment services, has seen most open warehouse positions in Houston in the manufacturing industry with assemblers and forklift operators being the top positions.

“Assemblers perform tasks that are necessary to the production or manufacturing process,” said April Hurley, manager of engagement, South Central U.S. Operations.

Forklift operators are also in high demand.

“In the current competitive labor market, we are seeing far greater flexibility from employers in terms of hiring requirements. Employers are willing to offer training to candidates with little to no previous work experience. More than ever before hiring managers are focused on soft skills such as dependability versus years of experience when considering new hires,” Hurley said.

Moreover, most employers provide some sort of safety training and a basic equipment training. At Kelly, hiring managers usually facilitate the training for new hires.

However, for those interested in learning to drive a fork-lift, there is training available at different venues in and around Houston.

For example, Forklift Academy offers a one-day training, where students learn hands-on in the classroom, and there is a test.

“When the class is over, students leave with a certification and permit to operate a forklift. There are seven different types of forklifts that students learn. There are classes in English and Spanish and for those with limited reading skills. For more information on the Forklift Academy’s classes, call us at 713-805-8512,” said Margo Olivares, manager and trainer of Forklift Academy.

For more information on Home Depot’s open positions, visit https://careers.homedepot.com
and for Kelly Services, visit www.kellyservices.us/.