Warehouse Supervisor

Description

About Richmond Wholesale Meat

Richmond Wholesale Meat, a Pro Food Solutions company, is a trusted leader in protein distribution with over 60 years of experience serving foodservice operators, government agencies, and global partners. Based in Richmond, California, we specialize in high-quality meat products, custom processing, and dependable service. As part of the Pro Food Solutions family, we are committed to operational excellence, customer focus, and building the future of food through innovation and integrity.

The Warehouse Supervisor serves as the frontline operations leader responsible for the Warehouse Department. The position’s primary duty is managing assigned warehouse operations and personnel, including workforce planning, labor deployment, employee performance, safety, inventory-control processes, productivity, compliance, service execution, and continuous improvement. This is done in partnership and alignment with the Warehouse Manager.

The Warehouse Supervisor will exercise discretion and independent judgment in managing assigned operations, establishing daily priorities, allocating labor, adjusting workflow, resolving operational issues, addressing safety and service risks, and implementing corrective actions. Warehouse Associates rotate and cross-train across inbound and outbound functions based on qualifications, safety requirements, workload, and business needs. Hands-on production work is expected to be occasional, such as training, demonstration, emergency response, or unusual surge coverage.

Essential Responsibilities

People Leadership & Workforce Management

• Directly supervise all Warehouse Associates
• Develop staffing plans, work schedules, labor allocations, shift assignments, cross-training plans, and coverage strategies based on projected volume, service requirements, employee qualifications, and operational risk.
• Evaluate candidates and provide recommendations regarding hiring and selection.
• Conduct performance evaluations and provide recognition and documented corrective feedback.
• Provide recommendations concerning promotion, advancement, transfer, discipline, and termination.
• Monitor attendance and performance, address employee concerns, manage routine workplace conflicts, and partner with the Warehouse Manager and Human Resources on higher-risk matters.
• Identify training needs and oversee onboarding, required certifications, skills development, and cross-training.
• Apply Company policies, operating standards, core values, and performance expectations consistently.

Operational Leadership & Independent Judgment

• Establish and align daily operating priorities and independently direct, assign, rebalance, and monitor work across receiving, put-away, replenishment, storage, inventory movement, picking, checking, staging, loading, returns, damaged goods, and housekeeping.
• Identify work sequencing, workflow and staffing adjustments, needed to meet service, safety, quality, productivity, and customer requirements.
• Lead pre-shift huddles, communicate priorities and safety expectations, confirm staffing and equipment readiness, and adjust operating plans as conditions change.
• Analyze productivity, order accuracy, dock flow, inventory integrity, damages, near misses, equipment condition, and service cutoffs and determine appropriate corrective or preventive actions.
• Investigate operational problems, inventory discrepancies, and service risks; determine immediate containment, assign follow-up actions, and recommend longer-term solutions.
• Serve as the primary operating decision-maker for the assigned shift and act on behalf of the Warehouse Manager when expressly delegated or when the Manager is unavailable.
• Plan for seasonal demand and surge activity and recommend staffing, overtime, equipment, process, or resource changes.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives and recommend changes to procedures, workflow, equipment, staffing models, and performance measures.

Safety, Quality & Compliance Management

• Supports Warehouse compliance with food safety, quality, security, sanitation, Company procedures, applicable USDA/USDC/FDA requirements, and Cal/OSHA requirements.
• Ensure employees are trained, qualified, and authorized before operating forklifts, hostlers, transporters, pallet tippers, wrappers, or other material-handling equipment.
• Stop unsafe work, initiate immediate containment, direct incident response, preserve required documentation, and escalate significant matters appropriately.
• Supports Warehouse audit readiness and oversee corrective actions arising from inspections, audits, safety observations, inventory reviews, or quality findings.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Partner with the Warehouse Administrative Coordinator on appointments, documentation, labeling, system transactions, certificates, and shipment-status priorities while maintaining clear accountability for floor execution.
• Coordinates, in alignment with the Warehouse Manager, with Account Management, Sales Operations, Logistics, Inventory Control, Compliance, and other leaders to establish priorities, resolve operating constraints, and manage service tradeoffs.
• Escalate significant customer, financial, regulatory, personnel, safety, quality, inventory, or service risks to the Warehouse Manager while retaining responsibility for timely operational containment and follow-through.
• Communicate decisions, owners, actions, and timing clearly and maintain appropriate operating records and management documentation.

Schedule & Attendance Expectations

• This is an onsite supervisory role. Regular and reliable attendance, punctuality, and availability to lead assigned operations are essential.
• Start times and schedules will be determined by the Warehouse Manager in collaboration with the Warehouse Supervisor and based on business needs.
• Operational, seasonal, staffing, customer, and surge conditions may require start times, schedules, assignments, or coverage to change. When practicable, adequate advance notice will be provided for planning purposes.
• As an exempt employee, the Warehouse Supervisor is expected to work the schedule and additional hours reasonably necessary to fulfill management responsibilities and meet business needs. The position may require early mornings, evenings, weekends, holidays, or emergency coverage.

Minimum Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED required; associate or bachelor’s degree in business, supply chain, logistics, operations, or a related field preferred.
• 3+ years of progressive warehouse, distribution, logistics, or supply-chain experience, including demonstrated responsibility for supervising employees, workforce planning, operational decision-making, and performance management.
• Demonstrated experience interviewing, training, evaluating, coaching, and making personnel recommendations.
• Experience with receiving shipping, inventory control, food-safety practices, warehouse systems, productivity measures, and material-handling equipment.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Outlook, Word, and Excel and the ability to learn xTuple, DSS, and other ERP and business systems.
• Ability to exercise independent judgment, apply standards consistently, protect confidentiality, and make timely decisions under pressure.

Physical Demands & Work Environment

• Regularly stands and walks and frequently works around powered equipment, vehicle traffic, docks, and warehouse activity.
• May occasionally bend, reach, grip, push, pull, and lift or move up to 50 pounds, or up to 100 pounds with assistance or approved equipment, when supporting training, emergency, or surge activities.
• Works in environments ranging from ambient temperature to approximately -10°F, with moderate to loud noise, and must wear required personal protective equipment.
• Physical requirements may be met with reasonable accommodation where required by law.

Job Description Notice

This job description summarizes the position’s primary duties and is not intended to be comprehensive or all-inclusive. Duties, responsibilities, priorities, work assignments, schedules, and reporting relationships may change or evolve based on operational, seasonal, customer, regulatory, staffing, or other business needs. The Company will provide reasonable advance notice of material scheduling or duty changes when practicable for planning purposes. Nothing in this description creates a contract of employment or alters at-will employment. Reasonable accommodations will be considered for qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions, consistent with applicable law.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Richmond Wholesale Meat, a Pro Food Solutions company, provides equal employment opportunities and prohibits unlawful discrimination, harassment, and retaliation on any basis protected by applicable federal, California, or local law. Applicants and employees may request a reasonable accommodation through Human Resources.