Continental treats employees like family

Erik Alanis was looking for a job, so he could support his wife and two kids when he came across a job opening at Continental in Mt. Pleasant.

'I saw what they were paying, and it caught my attention,” Alanis said.

That was over a year ago. Today, Alanis goes to work with a smile on his face.

'I love it. The wages are awesome. It's treated me good,” Alanis said.

The salary isn't the only benefit of working at the hose supplier. Around the holidays, Alanis will walk off his shift and receive a free ham and turkey, courtesy of Continental. And according to Alanis, the ham is even bigger than the turkey.

Continental also gave him a $100 voucher to purchase new steel-toe boots for work.

The workforce culture isn't so bad either. During the polar vortex earlier this year when Alanis was at work and the heater went out in his home, his co-workers covered for him and let him leave to take care of the emergency.

'I see myself here for a long time,” Alanis said with enthusiasm.

Denise Hill, human resources manager at Continental, said the perks they give employees is simply possible because of how successful the plant in Mt. Pleasant is.

'That is very much because of the people we have working here,” Hill said.

There are 286 full-time employees at Continental, and they are looking to hire.

Each year at their annual banquet in April, Continental recognizes employees who had perfect attendance the year before and those who celebrated service anniversaries. During their banquet on Friday, April 5, Hill said they will honor 102 employees with perfect attendance and 37 service anniversaries in 2018.

Employees at Continental work a 24/7 rotating swing shift. Shifts are from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. or 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. If an employee works the day shift Monday and Tuesday, they have Wednesday and Thursday off. Then they work nights Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The next week they would work only during the day on Wednesday and Thursday.

'It's a challenging schedule,” Hill said. 'There's a love-hate relationship with it because the advantages are people work an average of 15 days a month. The hate part is working nights, especially the quick turnaround from day to night shifts.”

Clint Hall, who has been working for the company since 1999, loves the hours he works at Continental. They give him time for a lot of 'extracurricular activities” from hunting and fishing to scheduling a doctor's appointment during the day without worrying about it interfering with work, he said.

However, Hall also enjoys work and his co-workers. When Hall works Saturdays with his team, the company provides a main entree and employees are invited to bring a side dish or dessert.

Hall takes advantage of Continental's program where each employee can take home up to 200 feet of hose each year. Another perk is that employees can get a discount on up to 12 sets of tires a year.

Continental also recently rolled out a new, formal recognition program called Inspire. If an employee notices a fellow cowoker going above and beyond, they can recognize them through the Inspire website. Employees who are recognized will get a thank-you card and can earn points that can be cashed in for merchandise.

Through Inspire, employees can purchase gift cards to major retail stores, electronics, vacuums, high-end purses, jewelry, hunting gear and more.

Cindy Kennedy, who has been with Continental for 14 years, said it's a good place to work, with good pay. While she's aware of the Inspire program, she hasn't yet had the chance to compliment another employee by recognizing them through Inspire. 'We get a lot of good friendships here over the years,” Kennedy said. 'I would suggest the company to other people. It's a good place to work.”

Shanae Ford, who has 17 years of experience at Continental, has a more routine schedule working 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the week. It's perfect for the mother of two.

Ford is a team lead at Continental. She is starting a committee to collect money for anyone in the department with a sudden financial need. People in the department can donate a few dollars and can take advantage of some extra cash if they need to.

'We're a little family,” Ford said.

Employee satisfaction is good at Continental, Hill said. Results from an employee survey completed last year were overall very good and showed an engaged workforce.

'We have just good people who want to come in here and do a good job and at the end of the day go home satisfied they contributed to something,” Hill said.