Increasingly, to meet facility staffing needs, managers are looking for workers with multiple skills. Managers say that having maintenance workers with a variety of skills results in a more flexible staff and increased productivity. For example, when installing a motor or pump, one person can perform both the mechanical and electrical work, instead of having one person for each part of the task. But multi-skilled personnel are not only more difficult to find, they are more expensive, too. And there are other challenges with this concept.
Maintenance is different than field trades.
Finally, when managers require multi-skilled staff, pay levels often become an issue. Many managers cannot hire the set of skills needed. You find a great attitude, some skills and ability. This does not cost you either way. Pay for the skill or pay for training, and support services to fulfill the needs.