Thirty-six percent of businesses will add a temporary worker to their team this year. It’s a trend that has been steadily growing as companies feel the squeeze of rising costs and a struggling economy. Although some companies remain squeamish about hiring potentially unreliable temps, many temporary workers actually prove to be better workers than their permanent counterparts. Not convinced? Consider these reasons a temp may be good for your business.
Benefits of Temporary Staffing
As jobs become more scarce, increasingly qualified workers are packaging themselves as “free agents,” using temporary work as a springboard to permanent positions. For businesses, the new temporary worker dynamic offers some significant pluses:
- Accommodates flexible working hours and seasonal fluctuations. Temporary workers can help fill in the gaps in productivity as more employees take advantage of flex hours. They can also help handle increased workload during the holidays, tax season, and other times when business picks up temporarily.
- Gives employers an opportunity to evaluate workers before hiring. With no long term commitment, temporary positions allow employers to closely evaluate a worker’s abilities and performance on the job with the option to bring them on board permanently if they like what they see.
- Lower hiring costs. For short term, specialized work assignments, it can be cheaper to hire a temporary worker rather than a permanent employee with benefits. If you use a staffing agency, you’ll be saved the cost of recruiting, screening, payroll expenses, and in some cases, training.
Bringing Temporary Workers On Board
Creating a positive relationship with temporary workers can help establish brand loyalty, build rapport with workers you may want to hire permanently later on, and create brand ambassadors among those who don’t remain as a permanent part of the team. Include these elements in your onboarding strategy for new workers:
- Realistic expectations—Don’t hold out promise for permanent job potential if you can’t or don’t intend to follow through.
- Adequate training—Make sure temps know exactly what you want and that they’ve been adequately trained to perform as expected.
- Positive HR experiences—Accurate time records, paperwork, payroll expectations and legal processes all contribute to an overall positive experience with your company that will pay off down the road.
- Integration into the team—Whether you plan to hire permanently later on or not, every temp work should feel like a valuable team member in order to perform at his full potential.
- Exit surveys—You can gain valuable insight about your work environment by interviewing or surveying temporary workers as they leave your company.
Don’t be shy about hiring temporary workers. As increasingly qualified workers are joining the ranks of the unemployed, you may find some star performers among the seasonal employees you bring on board.
