Training quality and employee retention are directly connected. Better training programs and clear career paths significantly reduce operator turnover and brain drain in packaging operations.
- Nearly two-thirds of packaging operators have fewer than two years' experience, while employers prefer candidates with over five years' background
- Only 17% of respondents rated current training as effective or highly effective, indicating widespread training quality issues
- Staff turnover makes training difficult and endless, creating a cycle where operators leave before becoming fully skilled
- Solutions include creating clear career paths that allow trained operators to become trainers and revamping training materials to be visual, standardized, and less complicated
- Generalized, overly complex, and non-visual training materials lose significant value for operators and contribute to retention problems
Employee retention and operator training exist in a symbiotic relationship. One constantly connects to the other. When training quality is low, retention is low.
According to PMMI’s Beyond Manuals CPG and OEM respondents said they struggle with the level of experience in line operators. Forty-nine percent of respondents said the average experience level is six months to two years, while a further 13% estimated it at less than six months.
PMMI Business Intelligence: 2025 Beyond Manuals: Setting the Right Expectations for Operator Training on Modern Packaging Lines
Almost two-thirds of packaging line operators have fewer than two years’ experience; however, respondents said an ideal background for operators would be over five years.
This connects back to the issue of employee retention. Many respondents said staff turnover is a major challenge for trainers and makes it difficult to train operators.
“It’s difficult currently to get qualified workers to show up to work every day,” a respondent said. “Sometimes the training feels endless.”
While respondents are concerned about turnover, they also admitted that the quality of training provided is ineffective.
When asked to evaluate current training, 57% of respondents said it was adequate, while only 17% said it was effective or highly effective. This indicates significant issues around the nature of training being offered.
To slow the brain drain one panelist suggested providing a clear career path. Creating new roles facilitates job variety and allows trained operators to leave the line and become trainers themselves.
Other ways CPGs and OEMs can retain employees include revamping training models. When materials are too generalized, overly complicated, not standardized, or not visual enough, they lose value for operators.
SOURCE: 2025 Beyond Manuals: Setting the Right Expectations for Operator Training on Modern Packaging Lines
For more insights from PMMI’s Business Intelligence team, find reports, including Beyond Manuals: Setting the Right Expectations for Operator Training on Modern Packaging Lines, Inside the Workforce Gap, and The New Material World: Packaging’s Path Toward Sustainability at https://www.pmmi.org/business-intelligence.
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