He struggles to fill vacancies on the two teams he has working for his company, Gillion Logging, of Waikouaiti, which is contracted to Blakely Pacific forests at Herbert and Waimate.
"I'm not knocking young people," he emphasised this week.
"They're not used to physical work outdoors - they spend their time on computers and PlayStations inside or watching television.
"Then they get out in the real world and find it too hard. It really frustrates me.
"Our biggest asset is people, but we are losing that New Zealand ability to be able to do anything. It's a pity, such a huge waste of a resources," Mr Winmill said.
On a good day, he said while pointing out a clear sparkling day at Herbert Forest this week, you could not get a better job.
"It's character building. You learn to take the knocks in life."
Mr Winmill has just filled one vacancy and has another. Turnover among his 13 staff is not high, but when he needs a worker he is finding it increasingly hard to attract someone.
When young people find out they will not be driving machinery, they are not interested.
Involved in cable logging for 25 years, 22 years as a contractor working in Herbert and Waimate forests, he has had plenty of experience employing staff.
That was not a problem when he first started and, once in the industry, have tended to stay. One of his team members has been with him for 22 years, another 18 years.
The job had its attractions, including full training. The job had become more high-tech - gone are the days using axes and chainsaws to fell trees.
He would "give anyone a go" who was prepared to work. His most recent employee was just out of prison, getting into trouble because he could not handle alcohol.
Mr Winmill was keen to take him on, but struck a problem with a requirement his new employee undertake five weeks anger management training in the middle of the day.
Mr Winmill had contacted his probation officer, who flatly refused to change the time.
"It's frustrating, because we are keen to get this young man up and going. It would make more sense for him to be at work than doing two and a-half hours anger management a day for five and a-half weeks," he said.
New workers, depending on their former work record, start at about $16 an hour and get paid more as they complete training and gain experience.
During winter normal days are eight and a-half hours and in summer nine hours, five days a week.
The problem is not just associated with logging. Mr Winmill believed it applied to other similar industries.
He said you could have all the best equipment in the world, but it was only as good as the people who worked with it.
Forest Industry Contractors Association chief executive John Stulen said the problem was common throughout New Zealand, with a trend to what was termed "the Xbox generation".
There was also a misconception about the industry which now had hi-tech equipment.
"The jobs are better than people realise and we are working to change that perception. The machinery now used requires smart, articulate people," he said.
However, to get into the machinery needed "hard yards on the ground" learning the basics, which some young people were not patient enough to do.
The industry has its own training organisations which work with polytechs and visit secondary schools..
