Daniela Stanciu, Carmistin: Employees in rural areas have different needs than those in urban areas

Daniela Stanciu, a seasoned HR Director, sat down with Business Review and shared a glimpse into the inner workings of Carmistin. Stanciu provided valuable insights into the challenges and intricacies of the brand’s workforce, offering a captivating exploration of the realities that shape the work life of Carmistin employees.

Growing Opportunities at Carmistin: From Farm to Fork and Beyond

Daniela Stanciu describes Carmistin as an integrated business that respects the European “from farm to fork” principles that is constantly growing and expanding. “This year we will open a third slaughterhouse, for which it will be necessary to recruit a significant number of employees. On the pork side, we don’t have the whole integrated business yet, now we only have farms, but we are going to invest in pig slaughterhouses in the next period. There are other business directions, such as the pellet factory in Valcea for chicken shelters. Likewise, we have land that is not arable and on which we have installed photovoltaic panels,” said Stanciu, HR Director at Carmistin.

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“We have over 3,100 employees, and in Bucharest, there are only 142 people. This means that we are dealing with extremes; the programs we are discussing here apply to employees in Bucharest, but in the rural area where over 90% of the employees are, the reality is totally different. They are happy to receive their salary on time, not to mention other benefits. For them, the fact that we are a fair employer is very important. We tried to see what the needs of those people are, we went to them and sought to see what problems they face. One problem was that many of them work for us as husband and wife, and they have problems with taking care of the children at home. For them, we launched an afterschool program for children, where they are brought to with our transport vehicles, they have a hot meal and they also have teachers who help them with their homework. These are the problems they need help with. This year we also launched a children’s camp, for now it is at the beginning, we hope to expand next year.”

Safeguarding Slaughterhouse Workers’ Well-being

The challenging working conditions faced by slaughterhouse employees are a crucial aspect to consider when discussing their health, and Carmistin takes their workers’ well-being very seriously. “They cannot work remotely, they work at very low temperatures. We try to help them through medical assistants who are always there and who consult them whenever they need, including by teaching them about the problems that can arise and about which they know nothing. These are the real benefits for them, for those who are in the blue-collar area.”

Stability, Recognition, and National Pride at Carmistin

“On the recruitment side, I can say that we are lucky to have a well-known brand on the market and seen as positive. We also had help from the state, which allowed us to give good salaries, and for the workers, even 100 lei is important. Also, it is a stable job no matter what problems arise in the economy; we will need food all the time. And they need this security, then the fact that we are a Romanian company, in the rural area is important. We often go abroad, but we have noticed that after flirting with a job abroad, many return and prefer a stable job here, at home.”

Carmistin’s Quest for Talent in Olt

The next slaughterhouse will open in Olt, where we are looking for 800 employees plus 200 TESA staff, and we will see how we convince them, not being known there. We go to professional schools and look for collaborations, through which we promise them a job after they go through an internship period. And we hope that we will quickly create a positive brand in the Olt area as well.” – concluded Daniela Stanciu.