JOEPROPER

All my babies were born on Saturdays,  so I was able to enjoy the 2 day weekends.  I believe that the paid family leave reinforces the "younger" employees sense of entitlement, which can be precieved as selfish.  I was approached once with the request to have 6 weeks off.  I couldn't believe my ears!!  I reminded him that he needed to review that PFL act carefully and told him that he would need to survive on what the government was going to pay him because I would only offer 3 days paid and he could take his vacation pay at that time.  

Employees need to understand that this disrupts the shop and in some cases shuts it down.  Some shops only have 2 techs and losing 1/2 of your staff is crippling.   I believe that having good communication all the time with your employees and knowing what's expected is the key.

All in, my guys get over $80k per year.  That includes the whole picture, salary, tool allowance,  health care, IRA contribution etc...  We're in Westchester County NY and the labor rate is 113 and going up.  I can't  seem to attract techs either.  Maybe I'm not looking in the right places, maybe not offering enough, maybe no one is out there...  I wish I had the answer.  One thing i do know... my labor rate will be higher this week and I'll be paying closer attention to parts margins.

I agree with everything said above.  Tech wages are too low and will need to rise, but in order to do this,  labor rates and parts margins will need to rise also.  The money needs to come from some where and the cost of living isn't shrinking, so this is the wakeup call that most shops are faced with. 

This has to do with the criticism / wake up call that I received recently.   I was told that my shop wasn't clean and orderly, which could have cost me an opportunity that I was in pursuit of.  Attracting techs and customers alike begins with your shop's appearance.   Clean and safe work place sets your shop ( in some cases) apart from the competition, which in turn allows you to raise rates and hopefully be more profitable.  This is only a piece of the puzzle and stepping back and analyzing your operation should be done regularly to optimize profitability. 

Attracting quality techs is and will always be an ongoing challenge, so I'll be watching out for any advice that I can get.

We've only seen a few vehicles too and they went back to the dealers.  Maybe next year if the demand is stronger. 

@3PuttFever How do you plan on introducing this new pay plan to your techs?  Meeting with all at the same time or individually?  Do you have concerns about your Sr tech leaving? Or even a Jr tech leaving?  What amount of billable hours does the higher rate kick in?  

Reason I'm asking is because I have similar situation that's been going on for a while now.  Complacency, you need me, I can do what I want attitude.  I would like to keep this tech on my staff, but need a strategy to address him.