Today was the first day of recruiting at Tegu Honduras. When we drove into the industrial park this morning, about 150 people were waiting at the security gate. The crowd grew to over 200 by 10AM, when we allowed a controlled number (65) to come into our factory and register to be considered for a position with Tegu.
We had our recruits fill out information forms and basic math and comprehension tests. We did a basic vision test for everyone and then physical aptitude / dexterity tests (following instructions to operate a circular saw to cut precise wood pieces from a board and accurately placing magnets on a metal surface per instructions). It took about 4 hours for the Tegu team of 6 to lead all the recruits through the various stations, and we certainly learned a lot during the course of the day. We will do another such first round evaluation with another 60 people or so on Friday morning, leading into interviews which will begin on Saturday. Needless to say, amongst many other things going on in the factory setup, we are very busy!
We are currently looking to fill 10-12 production positions, and the fact that we had upwards of 200 people waiting for us (without making any kind of general announcement prior to today) points to the extreme scarcity of jobs, especially good ones, in Honduras. We hope one day to employ hundreds of Hondurans – for now, we are figuring out how to hire a few good men and women
