Toward Top Quartile: Southern Pine Labor Data Insights

by Bryan Beck, President, The Beck Group Consulting

Southern Pine Economics Series Blog #1

---

We at Beck recently added some new labor-related statistics to our Sawmill TQ benchmarking service for Southern pine sawmills. New data include average hourly wages, fringe benefit details, hourly and salaried turnover statistics, and safety performance information. What’s our takeaway?

First, average hourly wages at SYP mills have grown over 4% per year since 2012, easily exceeding the 2.6% inflation rate for that period. Second, health and life insurance represent the largest components of fringe benefits; to our surprise, however, it’s not a greater proportion of total compensation than it was a decade ago.

One interesting and curious fact is that some of the mills with the highest hourly wage rates also had the lowest total manufacturing costs. Some mills with the lowest wage rates had the highest manufacturing costs. We interpret this to say that highly automated mills tend to be more productive per labor hour, and their workforce has a higher proportion of highly skilled workers whose abilities command higher pay: millwrights, electricians, saw filers, and the like.

It might also be the case that “you get what you pay for” applies to the workforce. We have observed that while sawmill wage rates in the US South have been lower than other regions of North America, productivity rates (per labor hour) are also lower, meaning that the lower hourly pay is offset by the smaller amount of lumber produced by each worker.

We continually work to improve our benchmarking services to be the most complete, accurate, and timely information available to sawmillers. Sawmill TQ is offered in partnership with Forest2Market on their SilvaStat360 online platform, where you can also find complementary benchmarking services for log, lumber, pellet, and wood fiber values.

There are other ways that The Beck Group Consulting can help. Contact our team to discuss a consulting project focused on your company’s specific needs, strengths, and opportunities. We also conduct regular timber industry workshops, including our upcoming Keys to Successful Sawmill Management (December 3-4, 2024), Business of Forest Products (January 23, 2025), Sawmilling 101, Human Resources for the timber world, and more.

And if you want to engage our experience more directly, please call (503)684-3406 and our staff will help guide you.

The Beck Group, Inc.

Forest Products Planning and Consulting Services

Telephone (503) 684-3406

Email: info@beckgroupconsulting.com