In an economy like this, where unemployment is still very low, dangerous jobs can be the hardest to fill. After all, when you can get a job that pays well and doesn’t involve the threat of injury or death, why take a chance? Still, it’s not impossible to fill positions like these. You just have to be smarter with how you recruit. To that end, here are three tips to find great candidates for dangerous job positions.
Emphasize the Emotional Rewards
Jobs that are dangerous need more than just good pay – they have to be emotionally satisfying. For example, being a police officer is dangerous. According to Benson & Bingham, police officers are faced with work-related hazards on a daily basis. Some hazards might include purposeful and accidental gunfire, vehicle-related incidents, heart attacks, duty-related illness, and drowning. However, people still choose the job, because of the emotional rewards that accompany the duty. Emphasizing those rewards is important in recruiting for these jobs.
Offer Attractive Benefits
There’s no doubt about it—you have to pay well and offer a slew of great benefits if you’re going to fill these jobs. This means more than just a competitive, high salary. It also means a variety of other benefits, including high-quality and affordable health insurance (particularly to cover expensive injuries which may be likely to occur), flexible schedules, the chance to work overtime and a generous retirement package. Simply put, dangerous jobs will not be filled unless the total pay and benefits package is satisfactory.
Recruit from the Military
According to Northeastern University, members of the military who are reentering the civilian workforce have learned fantastic skills that can serve them well when it comes to working in dangerous jobs. Some of these attributes include grace under pressure, the ability to multitask and being at one’s top physical condition. Furthermore, these men and women are likely to be more willing to work in dangerous positions, and may in fact seek them out. As such, targeting military veterans in your advertising and recruitment efforts is more likely to land you a great candidate than just targeting the general population.
Finding candidates for dangerous jobs can be a difficult proposition but not an impossible one. You just have to alter the way in which you engage in recruitment. Try the three items above and you will be well on your way to recruiting well-qualified candidates for your difficult-to-fill jobs.