How to Make Your Next Automotive Mechanic Hire

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Last updated at 09-17-2020 18:39:36

Overview

Methodology

More than 14,840 companies advertise 58,670 Automotive Mechanic jobs on SimplyHired and its partner sites each year. After analyzing job postings and salary information from these companies, as well as direct job seeker feedback, we’ve compiled a list of insights to show you how to attract and hire your next Automotive Mechanic most efficiently.

Hiring Process

In the past quarter, we’ve seen 21,805 job posts from 7,291 employers in the United States. This is a increase of 63.1% compared to the previous quarter. On average, there are 18 Automotive Mechanic job seekers for every active Automotive Mechanic job, which shows that it is a job seeker's market.

Writing a Job Description

In the past quarter, Automotive Technician, Automotive Mechanic, Delivery Driver, Truck Driver, Warehouse Worker, Mechanic, Service Technician, Maintenance Technician, Diesel Mechanic, and Technician seem to be the most sought after jobs amongst the Automotive Mechanic candidates in the United States. This is pretty consistent compared to the same data in the last 6 quarters. If you use one of these currently popular titles in the job description, you'll likely be able to attract a lot more candidates to apply.

For the Automotive Mechanic candidates who are actively applying to jobs in this same period, we see that 18.8% of the active Automotive Mechanic candidates have less than 3 years of experience, 16.0% have between 3-5 years of experience, 23.6% have 6-10 years of experience, and 41.6% have over 10 years of experience. The average years of experience has shifted from an estimated 10.1 years to 9.7 years. If you're posting a job in today's market, expect candidates with about the same experience level to apply to your job compared to the last 2 quarters.

In the previous quarter, the most popular skills that employers are looking for include automotive repair, mechanic experience, automotive diagnostics, customer service, mechanical knowledge, communication skills, computer literacy, stocking, alignment, and writing skills. Demand for writing skills, stocking, Microsoft Excel, English, automotive diagnostics, computer literacy, Spanish, auto body repair, dealership experience, and mechanic experience has significantly increased. If you are looking for an Automotive Mechanic with a similar skill set, be sure to follow industry best practices in skill requirements.

Job posts with salary information received about 1.4 as many applies as those without it. In the past quarter, less than 45.2% of the job posts displayed salary information. By adding salary information to your job posting, you could potentially increase the number of applicants by approximately 40.0%.

Example Automotive Mechanic responsibilities

  • Prepare work area for service, service multiple vehicles, and repair vehicles
  • Service vehicles based on customer requests and needs
  • Test drive vehicles to check for problems
  • Identify vehicle problems and conduct diagnoses
  • Replace parts as needed

Recruiting

Active Recruiting

When reaching out to candidates, it’s best to understand where to look. We’ve identified hiring trends in states as well as companies regularly hiring for Automotive Mechanic positions. This should provide a good place to start looking for qualified candidates. According to our data in the last quarter: Florida, Texas, California, New York, and Illinois are the states that have the highest demand for Automotive Mechanics. Texas, California, Florida, New York, and Illinois are where most job seekers are searching for Automotive Mechanic jobs. If we look at the Automotive Mechanic to job ratio, Iowa, South Carolina, Maryland, Delaware, and Florida have the lowest number of Automotive Mechanic applicants per job. Hawaii, Oklahoma, Nevada, North Dakota, and Idaho have the most active Automotive Mechanic job seekers per job.

Passive Recruiting

While actively recruiting candidates for your role, you should also post your job to SimplyHired. By posting for free and paying only for the qualified applicants you want, your post will automatically go to a network of job boards to reach millions of qualified candidates. With SimplyHired, it doesn’t end with the post. You can track your applicants throughout the hiring process with our simple and easy to use Applicant Tracking System (ATS).

Review Candidates

In the last quarter, we estimate there are 395,967 job seekers interested in Automotive Mechanic opportunities in the United States. That’s a 38.3% increase compared to the previous quarter with 286,215 active job seekers. Around 18.8% of the active Automotive Mechanic candidates have less than 3 years of experience, over 16.0% have between 3-5 years of experience, 23.6% have 6-10 years of experience, and 41.6% have over 10 years of experience. The average experience level of the available Automotive Mechanic candidates is 9.7 years. Active candidates in the Automotive Mechanic profession most commonly have high school diplomas, followed by associate's degrees, bachelor's degrees, and master's degrees. When setting education requirements for your position, aligning with the industry standard makes it easier to find potential candidates. Application rates indicate that Automotive Mechanic candidates are likely experiencing a market in which applicants have greater negotiating power. From an employer perspective, you'll likely have to attract several times more candidates to make a hire compared to other professions.

Interviewing Candidates

Interview Process

*Self-reported data collected from 2,750 Automotive Mechanics from 1/1/2020 to 6/30/2020, via online employer reviews for companies including Firestone Complete Auto Care, Walmart, Jiffy Lube, Mavis Discount Tire, Toyota, Alpine Buick GMC, Kawasaki Rail Car, Inc, CarMax, Meineke Car Care, and Mr. Tire Auto Service Centers.

After analyzing post-interview data from Automotive Mechanic candidates in the last 6 months, we see more than 56.0% of the candidates self-reported being hired within 1 to 2 days. Around 88.6% of the candidates for this job reported being hired within 2 weeks. If your process takes longer than 2 weeks in the recent market, you'll likely lose these candidates to other employers. Most of the Automotive Mechanic candidates are expecting a on-site interview, background check, drug test, and phone call/screening. Most employers do not require a problem solving exercises, written test, or group interview. If you are trying to hire your next Automotive Mechanic quickly, consider simplifying and streamlining the hiring process. As for the interview experience, more than 68.8% of the candidates had a good or great interview experience, and more than 47% of the candidates thought that the interview leaned more towards easy.

Example Interview Questions

  • What do you understand by the term automotive repair and service?
  • How do you determine that you have fixed a problem correctly?
  • How do you keep a car maintained long term, reliably used without problems and ensure that nothing does break down or need repair or replacement soon?
  • How might you prepare to repair an electrical system of a vehicle?
  • How do you determine what and where to inspect when checking for leaks under the car?

Final Review and Offer

Reference Check

Checking references is a quick and easy way to check for any red flags that didn’t arise to this point in the hiring process. Great insights can be provided by former colleagues and employers.

Crafting an Offer: Salary and Benefits

The average Automotive Mechanic salary offered by employers increased for 3 out of 6 consecutive quarters in the United States. In the last quarter, we see a decrease of 7% from $61,156.08 to $56,940.84 compared to the quarter before, which is the biggest decrease in the past 6 quarters. For Automotive Mechanic positions, the most common benefits job seekers reported being offered by employers include: healthcare insurance by 65.1%, paid time off by 58.9%, dental insurance by 56.2%, a 401k plan by 51.4%, vision insurance by 47.9%, discounts by 43.8%, and stock options/grants by 13.7%. While still relatively rare, more and more employers now offer flexibility benefits, including maternity leave, fully remote, sabbaticals, mostly remote, flexible working hours, location variety, paternity leave, and somewhat remote, to attract and retain Automotive Mechanic candidates to their organization.

Background Check and Drug Test

According to self-reported job seeker feedback, 25.4% of the employers conducted a background check, and 22.9% of the employers conducted a drug test prior to the hiring of their Automotive Mechanic candidates.

Onboarding

When you’re ready to hire an Automotive Mechanic, SimplyHired is here to help with your next steps. Our Human Resources Information System (HRIS) provides onboarding tools and other essential HR tools. From document signing to time off tracking, our HRIS will help you seamlessly move an Automotive Mechanic candidate through the hiring and onboarding process.
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