Let’s not sugarcoat it, hiring qualified forklift operators in the US is getting harder by the week. Staffing firms across the country are facing delayed placements, rising costs, and frustrated clients who just want the job done.
The old playbook isn’t working anymore. There aren’t enough drivers, and the ones who are available are demanding more flexibility, higher wages, and better benefits. You’ve probably already stretched your recruiter bandwidth and run every referral play in the book.
So what now?
Some of the savviest staffing firms are doing something different. They’re pivoting, from laboronly supply to automation-enabled fulfillment.
If your clients are running warehouses, distribution centers, or 3PL operations, you’ve heard the same complaints:
Meanwhile, your recruiters are exhausted trying to fill roles that just aren’t attracting enough talent.
This isn’t a short-term issue. It’s a structural shift in the labor market. And it’s time to rethink your strategy.
Imagine telling a client: “We can’t find you a driver today, but we can get you an autonomous forklift by next week.”
That’s the power of partnering with autonomous forklift providers like Humro. We’re not here to replace staffing firms, we’re here to help you keep delivering outcomes even when the talent pool runs dry.
Here’s the model that’s working:
No capex for the client. No recruiting headache for you. No idle equipment on the floor.
You stay relevant: Clients see you not just as a labor vendor, but as a problem solver.
You keep earning: You get compensated even when no human labor is involved.
You future-proof your business: Automation is coming whether we like it or not. Being the one to introduce it puts you ahead.
You help your clients scale: Need 24/7 uptime? Add a second shift with zero hiring. Robots don’t call in sick.
You reduce churn risk: Happy clients with higher productivity and fewer delays are clients who stay with you.
Your clients don’t care whether it’s a human or a robot driving the forklift. They care about results, orders moving, docks clearing, SLAs being met. With the current labor market, delivering those results consistently requires more than just hustle. It requires new tools.
Staffing is evolving. The firms that lean into that evolution, by offering automation-as-a-service alongside traditional workforce solutions, are the ones that will stay relevant, profitable, and indispensable.
Let’s work together to make that shift. If you’re a US staffing agency ready to explore this model, Humro is ready to partner.
