How to Hire a Factory Worker

Factory Worker: What is the cost of hiring?

What is a factory worker?

A factory worker assists in the manufacturing or processing of products in a factory, such as food and beverages, industrial materials or commercial products

Factory workers may have hands-on roles, in which they prepare, sort or pack products themselves, or they may operate machinery that performs these tasks.

Factory workers may also be responsible for quality control, by sampling or testing products to ensure they meet specifications before being delivered to market, as well as for maintaining equipment.

Why hire a factory worker?

Factory workers are essential cogs in the operation of a factory, even if your manufacturing or processing largely relies on machinery.

They undertake or observe each part of the process and can quickly step in to correct or repair problems if they arise.

Hiring factory workers will be essential when undertaking business expansion and increasing the volume of product made, such as relocating from a home-based business to a larger, manufacturing facility.

Contributions of a great factory worker:

• create or oversee the production of goods in a factory
• address problems such as machinery failure quickly, minimising downtime and financial losses
• contribute to quality control, ensuring products meet your specifications.

Defining your hiring needs for a factory worker

Factory workers are typically employed in shifts, which may take place at night as well as during the day.

Shifts may be for the standard 7.6-hour day, but if 12-hour shifts better suit your production schedule, be aware of the penalty rates and other employment standards that you will need to adhere to.

You may like to offer a mix of part-time and full-time permanent roles to offer flexibility to candidates.

Casual employment, meanwhile, may also suit your needs, allowing you to quickly scale your workforce up or down, particularly during peak production periods of the year.

What are the types of factory workers?

Factory workers may be employed to undertake a range of roles in many kinds of factories. In some industries, you may require factory workers who have a particular set of skills or are willing to be trained in them. For example, those who can operate a stitching machine in a shoe manufacturing factory or those who can drive a forklift in a processing factory. In other industries, their skills may be transferable, or no technical skills will be necessary to complete the work, such as packing fruit.

When writing your factory worker job description, consider including some or all of the following keywords to improve the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on factory worker jobs, according to Indeed data:

• factory worker
• process worker
• pick packer
• factory
• warehouse
• factory hand
• forklift driver
• forklift operator
• retail
• labourer.

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Where to find factory workers?

To find the right factory worker for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

• Approach training providers: Training providers that offer certificates or tickets for the basic skills applicable to processing or manufacturing careers may have students who are seeking employment once they finish their course.
• Network: Attend community employment networking events in your area, such as job expos, to connect with potential job seekers or community career advisers who may recommend suitable candidates.
• Engage a labour hire company: Many labour hire companies have talent pools from which you can draw suitable factory workers.
• Community noticeboards: Post your vacancy on community noticeboards that will be read by job seekers who may be suitable for your type of work, such as at a backpacking hostel if backpackers will meet your needs.
• Post your job online: Try posting your factory worker job on Indeed to find and attract quality candidates. 

Skills to look for in a factory worker

A successful factory worker candidate will typically have the following skills and competencies, which may be gained through a variety of experiences, training or education:

• teamwork
• a solid work ethic, including punctuality and dependability
• attention to detail and ability to follow instructions
• knowledge of occupational health and safety techniques, including manual handling
• willingness to learn new things, such as operating factory-specific machinery
• a forklift and/or driver’s licences.

Writing a factory worker job description

Now that you know the key skills, salary expectations, popular job seeker search terms and hiring insights for a factory worker, you’re ready to write a job description.

A factory worker job description typically includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities, and the required and preferred skills for the position. You may also want to include information about your company culture, benefits and perks to attract candidates to your vacant role.

Ready to get started? See our full guide for writing factory worker job descriptions.

Interviewing factory worker candidates

Strong candidates for factory worker positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• interest in completing repetitive tasks
• ability to operate machinery and/or conduct hands-on tasks
• experience working in a team and attention to detail
• knowledge of safety procedures relevant to the industry
• behavioural questions around problem-solving and the ability to follow instructions.

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of factory worker interview questions for examples (with sample answers).