Z Staffing survey reveals interesting insights about ECEC staffing

Z Staffing, an app based staffing solution for the early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector, has undertaken a survey of nearly 200 early childhood service providers to identify the primary challenges they face when it comes to staffing their sites. 

Approximately 40 per cent of those who responded to the survey reported having to close rooms or withhold enrolments due to staffing challenges, while almost all respondents (95 per cent) said they felt ‘stressed’ or ‘extremely stressed’ by dealing with staffing challenges. 

40 per cent of respondents said that it was becoming harder to find high quality staff to meet their requirements, and over 60 per cent identified challenges in finding time to manage their recruitment processes. 

Thankfully the team at Z Staffing were able to also offer some insights and solutions to the issues being faced as part of their data gathering exercise, offering the following ‘best practice’ suggestions for attracting and retaining staff. 

Stand out

This refers to having a solid understanding of your service or brand, and being able to articulate the culture, pedagogy, environment, digital presence and candidate experience which is on offer to a prospective employee, and being able to offer them an experience which they are unable to access with another provider. 

Look far and wide 

Here, Z Staffing recommends “casting the net wide, but in areas you know work”. The team recommends taking an analytical approach to where your employees are responding, where the broader ECEC sector is the most active, and where critical sector specific conversations are happening. 

Consider forming partnerships with tertiary institutions, producing sector specific resources, or increasing/establishing internal referral bonuses to attract interest. 

How valuable is your offer? 

In a crowded recruitment market, where educators are ‘spoilt for choice’ when it comes to accepting a position, Z Staffing believes it is important to consider the employee value proposition (EVP). 

In simple terms, knowing your EVP means knowing what it is you have to offer an employee. Aspects of an EVP may include: 

• Remuneration 
• Career development
• Proactive recognition & rewards aligned to values
• Strong feedback channels – with visible actions 
• An environment that sets them up for success
  • Resources
  • Schedule
  • Avoid burnout

Learn more about Z Staffing here.