Almost every business in the United States is currently struggling to fill all kinds of positions. The government also offered an enhanced unemployment benefit of $300 per week during the summer, making hiring even more challenging. To combat the current recruitment and retention challenges, we offered an Enhanced Employment benefit (Buechel Bucks)of $300 per week to all our Rockstars for the summer. It was a big risk, but we could not chance losing #Rockstars during our busy season.

This was not an easy decision. When our leadership team reviewed this, it meant adding up to $850,000 in payroll and employer payroll taxes, or roughly an additional nine percent to our payroll. There were many sleepless nights, to say the least, but we knew what we had to do to take care of our business.

We set parties for each of our locations, and we wanted to make sure we held our core value of FUN. My partner Scott Buechel, our COO April Dowland, and I boarded a plane at 6:00 AM Monday to fly to Winfield, Kansas, to personally hand out the checks and say “Thank You” to everyone for the hard work and dedication to the job to make the program successful.

We landed in Wichita, KS, drove to Winfield, celebrated dinner and stories with the Kansas Rockstars at our favorite local Mexican restaurant, El Maguey. When we were all done, we said our goodbyes, jumped back into the car, and drove back to Wichita for the night to get on the plane to North Carolina the next morning. We caught the flight to Ashville, NC, via flight through O’Hare.

Next, we drove to Marion for dinner at our favorite local Mexican restaurant, Las Salsa, with the second shift Rockstars. We woke up Wednesday morning, went to the shop to see how things were going, hit lunch again at the same Mexican restaurant, and returned to the airport that afternoon to head home.

Thursday, the party continued. We brought all Wisconsin Rockstars under one large tent to celebrate together. Of course, we had Mexican catered in from Sombreros and corn on the cob grilled by Brad Karls. Having everyone together was a great experience. People cheered, they stood up and gave thanks to each other for helping get through the summer hours putting in 50-55 hours a week, and recognized their fellow Rockstars that showed commitment to our core values: Caring, Ownership Mentality, Personal Integrity, Fun, and Get Sh!t Done!

Buechel Bucks Enhancement Continues!

The program was such a success, we decided to do round two of “Buechel Bucks.” This round has the same ground rules with the payout for production Rockstars at $100 per week from September 20 through December 11, 2021. The check will be paid on December 17. By the end of the year, a large number of our Rockstars will have earned an extra $5,200 in bonuses.

Will it work again? Would we burn through all our cash? Could the economy flip to bear? Will the housing market tank and building come to an end? Will customers appreciate what we do for our Rockstars to help get their stone to them as quickly as possible? Questions owners and leaders think about all day, every day. What we at Buechel Stone do know is that if we take care of others when you can, they will take care of you when times are tough. We are all exceptional Rockstars, and our groupies love the product we make for them. Be bold, take chances, and take care of those around you.

Do you or someone you know want to be a Rockstar? Learn more about what it means to work at Buechel Stone. You’ll get to enjoy the benefits of becoming a Rockstar such as health, dental, and vision insurance. Buechel Stone offers paid time off, gym reimbursement, a 401(k) plan, short term disability, and more. Another perk of being a #Rockstar is 8 paid holidays (including your birthday and Veteran’s Day if you have served), a great Wellness program, and an employer that cares about your and your professional career.