Employee Appreciation

A popular workshop presenter at the 77th annual meeting of the Idaho Farm Bureau in Boise was a farmer and Farm Bureau member from Raft River. “Your employee is the tool for increased profits, they are the ones doing the job, they've got the boots on the ground.” Mike Garner is a partner/owner of Hagler Creek Farms where over 100 people work. His company recently conducted an employer/employee relationship survey with their farmworkers and the findings were surprising. The number one employee concern? “They want to know that they are appreciated, that they matter. You have to give them the tools that they need.” Second was better job descriptions. Third, employer listening more to their ideas on how to improve the operation. Fourth, more time working alongside the employer and, in a world where pay and rewards are usually the top priority, employees list pay as fifth most important. “Wages, number five. Clear down the list. The last thing on the list that was most important to them, was a bonus.” Garner’s work force is mostly Hispanic and, camaraderie is most important to their traditional culture. "We have a summer picnic which is very successful. They love to party. We have great food, a ton of door prizes, we have door prizes for their kids. Just hanging out and having fun. It gives us an opportunity to thank them. Last year, we started a Christmas party at the Burley Inn. We bring all of our families and we had over 200 people there. We have more employees that night and the next day just say that was so much fun, we really appreciate that. It had a feeling of unity that I have never felt before.” The survey has helped build a stronger bond between employees and employer and Garner says his workforce, like all humans, just want to be appreciated. "They just wanted to be thanked. They just wanted to know that they were doing a good job.”