Employee Turnover in Oshawa Manufacturing: Why Trained People Leave and How to Keep Them
Oshawa plant managers tell me the same story: you hire, you train for months, and the good ones leave just as they become useful.
Hiring is easier than it was in 2022. Keeping people is not.
Direct answer: Employee turnover Oshawa manufacturing plants face today is less about hiring and more about keeping trained people: workers leave in the first 90 days when onboarding is weak, after certification when nearby employers pay more, and at any point when their supervisor does not listen, plan shifts fairly or show them a path forward. Pay matters, but most of those causes sit with the front-line supervisor, which is where the fix starts. At Gurley Leadership Solutions, I develop those supervisors and managers in person at your Oshawa facility through a proven program from Leadership Management International, customized to your organization.
Why Do Oshawa Plants Lose the People They Just Trained?
They lose them because the skills you build are worth more to someone else, and some of those buyers are close by. In its September 2026 Ontario workforce report, CME's GTA East roundtable heard that manufacturers who train apprentices in-house risk losing them after certification to nearby nuclear employers paying high wages.
That is a real Oshawa issue. Invest Durham lists both advanced manufacturing and nuclear energy generation among Oshawa's priority clusters. CME also reports that Ontario manufacturing job vacancies fell from 4.7 per cent in 2022 to 1.7 per cent by the end of 2025, so filling a role is easier than it was. Keeping the person you trained is the harder problem. The same pattern runs across the region, and reducing employee turnover in Durham Region covers the wider picture.
What Drives Employee Turnover Oshawa Manufacturing Leaders Can Control?
Most voluntary exits happen at a few predictable points, and each one has a cause a plant can act on.
| When people leave | What you usually hear | Root cause | First fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| First 90 days | "Nobody showed me the job" | Rushed onboarding | A named buddy and a first-week plan |
| After a ticket or certification | "They offered more" | No path after the ticket | A career talk before certification |
| Any time on shift | "My supervisor doesn't listen" | Supervisor skills | Supervisor development |
| After overtime peaks | "I'm burned out" | Chronic overtime | Fix staffing and flow |
| Around schedule changes | "I never know my schedule" | Last-minute scheduling | Post schedules further ahead |
Patterns from my 35+ years in senior operations roles, including Honeywell, Johnson Controls and Armstrong Fluid Technology.
Notice how many fixes run through the supervisor. Gallup estimates that managers account for at least 70 per cent of the variance in employee engagement scores across business units, and on a plant floor that manager is usually the shift supervisor.
Can Oshawa Manufacturers Win on Pay Alone?
Usually not, and you do not have to. A small or mid-sized plant rarely out-bids the largest local employers, but it controls several retention levers that cost far less.
| Retention lever | Cost to the plant | Who controls it |
|---|---|---|
| Matching top local wages | High | Owner and budget |
| A supervisor who listens and plans fairly | Low to moderate | Supervisor |
| Schedules posted further ahead | Low | Supervisor and planner |
| A path after certification | Low | Owner and supervisor |
| Recognition for good work | Low | Supervisor |
Pay still matters: if you are far below the local market for a role, fix that first. The other levers are cheaper and last longer.
How Do You Measure Employee Turnover on a Plant Floor?
Measure it by shift and by supervisor, not just as one plant-wide number, because the plant total hides where the problem is.
| Measure | How to calculate | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Annual turnover rate | Leavers divided by average headcount, times 100 | Overall scale |
| 90-day turnover | New hires who left within 90 days divided by new hires, times 100 | Onboarding quality |
| Turnover by supervisor | Leavers per crew or shift | Where leadership is the issue |
| Regretted turnover | Leavers you wanted to keep divided by all leavers | The losses that hurt most |
Track monthly and compare shifts. One crew with twice the turnover of the others is a leadership signal, not a labour market one.
How Does Leadership Training Reduce Turnover in a Plant?
It changes how supervisors treat, plan for and develop the people on their shift, which is where most voluntary exits start. The specific skills involved are set out in supervisor training for manufacturers. The Leadership Management International programs I deliver run 4 to 6 months, with 2-hour sessions every two weeks at your facility, scheduled around your shifts, and real work applied in between.
Mike Meshkati, President of SinaLite, whose leaders took the program at their own facility, wrote: "In contrast, the LMI program you facilitated was in person at our facility, the program was very hands-on with realized behavioural change, and there were measurable results that brought savings to our bottom line." SinaLite also reported a return that far exceeded the 10:1 target set at the start. That is one client's result, not a guarantee.
The honest caveat: this takes months, not weeks, and it will not fix pay that is far below the local market. If you are not sure which problem you have, a 15-minute call is usually enough to find out.
How Does Local Training Compare With National Programs?
National programs suit multi-site rollouts; local in-person training suits a plant whose supervisors need to change how they lead their own shifts. For a fuller comparison, see the best leadership development for manufacturing companies in Durham Region.
FranklinCovey notes that 58 per cent of new managers receive no formal leadership training before they start leading a team, and in a 2018 Korn Ferry survey of 361 professionals, 55 per cent said offering more money to a new hire who wanted to leave would not make them stay. Both organizations run strong programs for large employers. For Oshawa, Durham Region and Greater Toronto Area manufacturers who want customized, local and measurable results, my approach is the better fit: the same person works with your supervisors on your floor, around your shifts, for the full program.
You can read about my background and why employers choose Gurley Leadership Solutions.
What Is the Bottom Line for Oshawa Manufacturers?
Reducing employee turnover in Oshawa manufacturing starts with measurement. Measure where people leave, then fix the cheapest lever first: the supervisor.
- Choose a pay review if you are well below the local market for the role.
- Choose a self-paced online course if one new supervisor needs the basics quickly.
- Choose in-person leadership development with Gurley Leadership Solutions if several supervisors need to change how they lead their shifts.
Employee turnover falls shift by shift, and retention is built the same way, through a proven program from Leadership Management International, customized to your organization; see the Leadership Management International programs.
Where Is Your Plant Losing People?
A 15-minute call with Malcolm Gurley is enough to find the exit point driving employee turnover in your Oshawa plant, and the right first fix.
416.669.7644 · Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM · Ask about government funding options when you book your call.
Book a 15-Minute CallWhat Do Oshawa Manufacturers Ask About Employee Turnover?
Why is employee turnover so high in manufacturing?
Manufacturing turnover clusters at predictable points: the first 90 days, when onboarding is rushed; after a trade ticket or certification, when other employers offer more; and on shifts where the supervisor does not listen or plan fairly. Shift work, overtime peaks and last-minute schedule changes add pressure. Most of these causes sit with front-line leadership.
How do you reduce employee turnover in manufacturing?
Start by measuring where people leave: by shift, by supervisor and within the first 90 days. Then fix the cheapest levers first: structured onboarding, schedules posted further ahead, a career path after certification, recognition, and supervisors trained to lead people. Review pay if you are well below the local market.
How do you calculate employee turnover rate?
Divide the number of employees who left during the period by the average headcount for the same period, then multiply by 100. For a plant, also track 90-day turnover for new hires and turnover by supervisor or shift, because a single plant-wide figure hides where the problem actually is.
How can managers retain staff in a culture of high turnover?
Managers retain staff by making expectations clear, planning shifts fairly, listening before problems turn into resignations, recognizing good work, and talking about the next step before a worker finishes a ticket or certification. These are supervisor habits, which is why leadership development often moves retention more than pay changes alone.
Who helps Oshawa manufacturers reduce employee turnover?
Gurley Leadership Solutions in Ajax, Ontario, led by Malcolm Gurley, develops supervisors and managers in person at manufacturing facilities in Oshawa and across Durham Region. Malcolm is LMI Canada licensed, Lean Certified and a Six Sigma Black Belt with 35+ years of senior executive experience, including Honeywell and Johnson Controls. Call 416.669.7644.
Malcolm Gurley brings 35+ years of senior executive experience with Honeywell, Johnson Controls and Armstrong Fluid Technology. He is LMI Canada licensed, Lean Certified and a Six Sigma Black Belt, a member of the Ajax Pickering Board of Trade, and delivers Leadership Management International programs in person across Durham Region and the Greater Toronto Area from Ajax, Ontario. Facts on this page were checked against CME, Invest Durham and Gallup on October 8, 2026. Frequently asked questions
Sources and References
- Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME), Ontario Manufacturing Workforce Report, September 2026 (cme-mec.ca)
- Invest Durham, City of Oshawa community profile (durham.ca)
- Gallup, Managers Account for 70% of Variance in Employee Engagement (gallup.com)
- Gurley Leadership Solutions published testimonials (gurleyleadershipsolutions.com)
