Hiring a machinist from one of your customers

[RJT]

We are swamped with work and need to hire a good all around machinist. Two top applicants we have recieved applications from work for 2 different customers of ours. We make tooling fixtures and gages for them, customers make products using our tooling. Applicants have done both tooling and production machining (currently running production at our customers facilities). I don't want to shoot myself in the foot with my customers, but these guys are looking to change jobs so I am on the fence about interviewing / hiring them. Good machinist are hard to find, so are customers. Anyone been down this road before?

 

[Kingbob]

I hired several machinist from the same customer back in the day but they all came from a large multinational that only saw them as numbers. It pissed off some people but not the guy sending the work because he only saw it as beneficial to him. We did their overflow work so they came to me to run the same exact parts but in a more friendly (human) environment. That shop was a well known meat grinder around town, your mileage may vary. If you have a good relationship with a person over there run it by them that one of theirs put in an application and ask how they'd take it. Just don't give any names. Those guys are going to go somewhere, at least with you they still benefit the "customer".

 

[William Lynn]

Many years ago, several toolmakers were hired in a short time frame, all coming from the same company. This company was a major supplier to our plant, as in multi-million dollars worth a year. Soon after that company owner came to our plant and ripped the tooling manager a new one for hiring several of his best men, not behind closed doors but on the shop floor in front of everybody working in the vicinity. The owner was so mad that he mentioned the new boat his company had given the tooling manager in appreciation for his past business. That was a big oops.

Our plant later hired a few more from the same company with no ill affects. We couldn't do without buying from them and they couldn't do without selling to our plant, so it was all good. My opinion is if said employees were so valuable, he should have paid them more not to leave. His call, guess he liked to continually train people instead of paying what they were worth.

 

[???]

When I worked in the automotive industry as a toolmaker Toyota SA had a policy that a supplier couldn't hire their staff for at least six months after leaving. Obviously unwritten but if you went for a interview with a supplier you would be called into the toolroom manager's office and he would tell you they weren't going to hire you.

 

[memphisjed]

This is not cool for the employees. Unethical is understatement. People spend time gaining skills, you have no idea why they want to go somewhere else- the corporate blacklisting is becoming very common way to keep people locked in to a job.

 

[Kingbob]

This is not cool for the employees. Unethical is understatement. People spend time gaining skills, you have no idea why they want to go somewhere else- the corporate blacklisting is becoming very common way to keep people locked in to a job.

And big corporate america wonders why unions are on the rise again. Not to get political but this country belongs to the people who build it not the people who write the rules to favor themselves and their buddies. I run a small shop, everyone here is a friend or family, my hands get dirty everyday. Being a small business guy these days feel like playing Robin Hood.

 

[AARONT]

I'd at least interview them. It's not like you're trying to recruit them from your customer. If you were to hire one of them, I would ask them to not mention they were going to your shop when leaving.

 

[CatMan]

It wouldn't slow me down from hiring them.

They applied to your position on their own free will? Sounds like they were looking to leave anyway.

Would you be pissed if they went to work for one of your competitors instead of you? Knowing you needed a machinist and you would have loved to have them? But remember, you kept your customer!

It would be different if you went and recruited them to come work for you, but that doesn't sound like the case here.

 

[Ox]

There is a company in our area that has been hiring machinists away from one of their subs.
It has happened so many times that the word is on the street.

Not sure what to doo with that info...


------------------------

Think Snow Eh!
Ox

 

[Bill D]

There is a company in our area that has been hiring machinists away from one of their subs.
It has happened so many times that the word is on the street.

Not sure what to doo with that info...


Maybe the sub needs to pay them more so they do not leave. or maybe be nicer to them so they do not want to leave.

Bill D

 

[AndyF]

I think it depends upon the company. Years ago I worked for a very small company, less than 20 employees, and was approached by one of our subs who wanted me in his shop. When the owner found out he read the sub the riot act and basically told him, if you hire him you lose my business. I wasn't interested in the job, so it didn't bother me, but if I had been, the work the sub had planned for me would have disappeared soon after I was hired.

 

[Thunderjet]

There is a company in our area that has been hiring machinists away from one of their subs.
It has happened so many times that the word is on the street.

I say live by the sword, die by the sword.

And for the record, unions are NOT on the rise. Just because a few baristas want to form a union to dispense overpriced coffee, doesn't mean the unions are better off now than even ten years ago.

If unions were so powerful, why is it that the high seniority dudes vote to make the new hires get paid less than scale?

Happens every day at the local Ford plant.

I'm not against unions, I simply think they jumped the shark long ago.

Say what you want about the left coast and the writer's and actor's unions, they are actually DOING SOMETHING about their plight, and I support them in that endeavor.

The other unions should pay heed to that struggle.

JMHO

 

[DouglasJRizzo]

We are swamped with work and need to hire a good all around machinist. Two top applicants we have recieved applications from work for 2 different customers of ours. We make tooling fixtures and gages for them, customers make products using our tooling. Applicants have done both tooling and production machining (currently running production at our customers facilities). I don't want to shoot myself in the foot with my customers, but these guys are looking to change jobs so I am on the fence about interviewing / hiring them. Good machinist are hard to find, so are customers. Anyone been down this road before?

I'd be reluctant to hire off of a good customer. Unless, they're downsizing, or planning to, then different story.

 

[OVodov]

Kinda similar story in here, Big Toronto area happened to friend of mine. We have a dozen machine shops running by postSoviet owners all Russian speaking, and all of them made a pact no to hire people from other “Russian” shop. So my friend had an argument with his boss and wanted to change the working place, came for interview to my boss, during the interview called friend’s boss and asked my boss not hire him if he comes. Guess what, he didn’t get the job. The problem is that many are f Russian immigrants barely know English and scary to go to nonrussian place.

 

[EmGo]

this country belongs to the people who build it not the people who write the rules to favor themselves and their buddies.

You damn communists !

 

[HAA_S]

9-6. After traffic both ways. (My shop)
I feel the whole 5am to 230pm thing is because of the east coast and their hours. (Depending whom you do business with). That was the reasoning my boss gave me.
As an owner I work more of the 730am to 8pm. Or 2am to 2pm. I would not expect an employee to do it tho.
Good machinists are hard to find. Overall.

 

[john.k]

In the sandblast /paint trade ,there was one guy who was legendary for being able to spray 95% for 10-12 hours a day,day after day..........he would change employers every couple of months as better offers came in..

 

[JRHill]

This article seems like clickbait. Why is someone asking this question publicly - it's been going on forever?

It is totally situational dependent. Let me throw the exact opposite: I was a job shop machinist for everything and anything (except gears). A tool maker and sharpener. A specialty machine maker. A maintenance machinist. But I took a job at the railroad as a locomotive machinist and had my card. After that NO ONE would hire me after that. I got so frustrated with the whole mess I went back to school and got a BSMET to be done this this stuff. Unions, hiring back and forth or not, etc.

One shop hiring from another, another shop hiring away your folks.... Geez. Lifetime jobs went away a long time ago. But wisdom still prevails. Hiring from a sub, vendor or prime is really dumb if you don't have a feel on the market. But I did have a laugh of the manager walking into a shop in production and blowing a cork for offering one of theirs a job!

 

[HAA_S]

9-6. After traffic both ways. (My shop)
I feel the whole 5am to 230pm thing is because of the east coast and their hours. (Depending whom you do business with). That was the reasoning my boss gave me.
As an owner I work more of the 730am to 8pm. Or 2am to 2pm. I would not expect an employee to do it tho.
Good machinists are hard to find. Overall.

Sounds correct to me. 9-6 is the best as some clients and others sometimes need to come thru later. Yes, the 5am -230pm is if you deal with the east coast. Same thing I was told.

 

[AJ H]

Did you just answer yourself?