Hire Temporary Workers in New Jersey

Interview Questions to Ask Potential Seasonal Warehouse Associates

To get a clear picture of a candidate’s past experience, you’ll need to ask useful questions in the interview process. You may think that interviews for seasonal employees are less important. But because seasonal warehouse workers will have minimal time to onboard and learn the job, you’ll want to find someone with experience packing and fulfilling orders within a warehouse environment (or someone who is able to learn quickly).

Here are a few examples of questions you may want to ask during an interview:

1. Can you lift heavy boxes? What is your physical endurance like?

Most warehouse associates will be on their feet all day, packing orders and loading them into trucks for delivery. Some warehouse workers may walk long distances due to the size of the distribution center or the way orders are fulfilled. And most employees will have to lift and carry heavy items. If a candidate has any sort of physical difficulty performing these tasks, they will likely not be a good fit for this job, so this question is important to ask upfront.

2. How would you describe your ability to work on a team?

A warehouse associate functions as a crucial part of a larger team. When seasonal workers jump into a position for a few weeks or months, it’s so important to make sure they have decent communication skills and can get along with other members of the team. Seasonal employees usually pick up the slack during the busiest time of the year too, so if they cause roadblocks because of miscommunications or disputes with other employees, it may have serious business consequences.

3. Are you tech-savvy?

Many warehouses use recent technology to catalog and track orders as well as manage the supply chain. If a candidate wants to be a successful seasonal warehouse associate, they’ll need to quickly adapt to the technology you use in your warehouse.

4. Describe your past experience.

This is a general question, but perhaps the most important information to gather during the interview. You may be inclined to hire someone with limited experience for a temporary position because they will only work for your business for a short period of time, but those days, weeks, or months that a seasonal warehouse associate works for your company can be make-or-break. Consider your requirements: does the candidate have past experience in line with what you’re looking for? Have they displayed reliability in their past work? Are they willing to submit to a background check? These are all necessary parts of the hiring process, and you’ll need to answer these questions before you can move on to the next step after the interview.

We hope these questions help you hire excellent seasonal warehouse associates.