Hiring up 12.5% over last quarter; average employee age decreases

Stevens Point, Wis. – Worzalla, an employee-owned printing company specializing in high-quality custom products including children’s books and coffee table books, announced substantial hiring figures in the first quarter of its fiscal year 2020. In the last three months, Worzalla grew its workforce by 12.5%, adding 37 new associates in a variety of positions for a total workforce of 334 associates. Total growth over the previous year is 19.7%.

According to the Book Manufacturing Institute’s 2019 State of the Book Industry report, the U.S. added a total of 284,000 manufacturing jobs in 2018, describing the overall state of the industry as robust. The report says that the printed book industry has recovered from the declines it saw from the Great Recession and the rise of the e-book, and that the number of printed books is growing.

“As demand for U.S.-printed books has grown, we have had to expand our workforce to meet the demands of our customers, publishers from around the country,” said Brianne Petruzalek, Director of Human Resources at Worzalla. “There are a variety of career opportunities at Worzalla that cover the entire book-making process, from print and binding to logistics to maintenance, and we’ve had to grow in all directions to meet our customers’ needs.”

Additionally, Worzalla saw the average age of its associates continue to trend downward to 44.6 years old, down from 45.5 years old in the previous quarter. One year ago, the average age of a Worzalla associate was 47.2 years old. Of the new hires in the previous quarter, 57% were under the age of 30.

“We’ve made a specific effort to diversify our recruiting efforts and showcase Worzalla employment opportunities to people of all backgrounds, especially to younger generations,” said Petruzalek. “With over 25% of our workforce having over 25 years of experience with Worzalla, we have focused our efforts on adding the next generation of bookmakers to our team to provide an opportunity for those long-term associates to transfer their valuable knowledge of crafting a high-quality book to our new associates. This will help ensure the long-term sustainability of our business and our workforce.”

“People would be surprised to know that there is so much more to making a book,” said Lucy Hernandez, recently hired as a Machine Operator at Worzalla. “What I love most about Worzalla is being part of a team that takes pride in making different types of books that people will enjoy reading. And being employee-owned motivates me to take ownership of the quality of the work I produce.”

Worzalla’s previous quarter of dramatic hiring is unusual for the company, as its busy season is typically in the fall with the leadup to the holiday season, as books are a popular holiday gift.

The Book Manufacturing Institute’s 2019 State of the Book Industry lists additional statistics specific to book printing and manufacturing:

According to 2016 U.S. Census data (the most recent available), print’s economic footprint totaled $166.3 billion in annual shipments, 42,060 establishments, and over 810,000 employees.

Book manufacturers participating in the Printing Industry of America’s Ratios survey averaged before tax profit on sales of 3.4 percent, significantly higher than the entire printing industry average of 2.9 percent.

For more information about career opportunities at Worzalla, visit worzalla.com. 

Worzalla employee Lucy Hernandez.