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WHEN HELBERT WAS
AT THE HELM
45-Years ago, bringing down the
cost of workman's comp insurance was Job One for Jack Helbert. A
treasured possession belonging to WCPA honorary member for life
Jack Helbert is the commemorative gavel he was given at the close
of his term as WCPA president, way back in 1959."I'm very proud of
the things we accomplished that year," says Helbert, now retired
and living in Danville, Calif.
During Helbert's turn at the helm,
the WCPA tackled a number of important issues, but none more
crucial than that of the threat arising from the spiraling cost of
workman's compensation insurance. Workman's comp prices for canvas
shops in California had gone through the roof after a scaffold
collapse inside San Francisco City Auditorium left one man dead
and another permanently maimed. Both were employees of a company
that installed decorations.
"In those days, people who put up
decorations were classified by workman's comp in the same category
as awnings installers," says Helbert. "So, after the auditorium
accident, awning shops were unfairly penalized. "The WCPA waged a
successful effort to have decoration installers reclassified into
a different category from awnings installers.
Workman's comp rates for awnings
shops eventually headed back down. Helbert says the decline in
premium prices helped a number of small firms avoid financial
disaster. "The workman's comp coverage when it was way up there in
price caused a lot of hardship for many of our members," he says.
"Bringing the prices back into line took a lot of heat off our
guys."
FAMILIAR NAME
Helbert began attending meetings of
the WCPA in 1954, soon after acquiring an awning shop known then
as A.W. Brampton Manufacturing Co. When Helbert bought that firm,
it was already a familiar name in the Oakland market. During World
War II, Brampton produced hatch covers for naval and merchant
marine vessels under construction at local San Francisco Bay Area
shipyards.
After the war, Brampton focused on
awnings and patio furniture. It later developed a subsidiary
called Holiday Patio Products. At its peak, the company employed
as many as 25. Helbert sold Barmpton in 1976 to try his hand at
real estate sales and a few other ventures. From that time on, he
was out of the fabric business.
SAGE ADVICE
Occasionally, younger canvas people
today seek out Helbert for sage advice. He likes to tell them that
the most important thing they can do to achieve greater success is
take time to cultivate loyalty among employees. "The biggest
problem for most shops is employee turnover," Helbert contends.
"It hurts productivity any time you have trained, competent people
leave. So doing whatever you can to encourage them to stay with
you is the easiest and best way to avoid seeing your output go
down, your quality of work go down, your profitability go down."
Things he suggests be done to
foster better retention of employees include offering a more
competitive wage and making sure workers feel they have a voice a
voice that's listened to with regard to the way work should be
performed and concerning the kind of working conditions provided.
Other helpful hints: take time to
compliment individual employees for a job well done; periodically
host barbecues or parties for them and their families or friends;
pay for your workers to attend special training programs to
further develop their talents and knowledge. "My wisest piece of
advice is something I was taught early on, and that is if you buy
high and sell low, you'll always be assured of sleeping in the
streets." he chuckles. And, to be sure, the reverse is true, which
is the course Helbert in reality recommends. |
