Why Use Temporary Office Help?

Temporary staff may be right for you

Temporary office help, also known as contract help or contract labor, is a nontraditional work arrangement whereby workers are employed by an external company and work for a company for a predetermined, temporary period of time. Temporary office help is often a boon to employers in situations where traditional work arrangements are troublesome or inconvenient. When considering temporary office staff, review the reasons why this arrangement can be beneficial and whether these conditions apply to your business.

Function

Temporary office help arrangements exist to provide mutually beneficial employment arrangements in out-of-the-ordinary situations. Temporary employment agencies, or "temp agencies," exist for the purpose of providing office-based business with short-term employees. These employees are not employees of the business at which they are assigned, but are contracted through the temp agencies and receive paychecks from the temp agency's payroll. The businesses pay a fee to the temp agency which is a little higher than the cost of the employee's pay; the discrepancy between these amounts is used to fund the temp agency's business.

Benefits to Employers

Employers benefit from using temporary office help in circumstances where extra workers are needed for short periods of time. This may include substitute help for regular employees taking extended sick or parental leave or times when a business has a seasonal need for extra help (such as a financial institution needing extra help at the end of the fiscal year). Using a temp agency saves the employer the trouble of going through a time-consuming hiring and background check process; employers may do a preliminary interview with potential workers, or ask the temp agency to make the placement selection.

Benefits to Employees

Unlike temporary employees who are directly hired by their place of work, temp agency workers are usually long-time employees of the agency who can be eligible for benefits such as paid time off and health insurance. This, combined with greater job security than independent temporary work, makes long-term temping a more viable option for these workers. This not only makes the choice of a temp agency a more ethically sound one, it helps ensure a larger talent pool.

Unemployment and Stability

Businesses facing unsure times benefit from using temp agency employees in situations where hiring permanent employees is a financial gamble. Using temp employees on limited contracts instead of hiring, and then firing would-be permanent employees, will spare both the workplace stress associated with firings and the costs of increased unemployment premiums.

Convenience

Temp agencies are beneficial to employers with less experience in handling the responsibilities that come with having employees. A temp agency will handle most employment-related issues such as background checks, payroll and taxes and issues related to behaviors in the workplace. Though businesses are responsible for following all rules and regulations related to these issues, the temp agency makes this easier by informing businesses of their responsibilities to the employee.

References

• American Staffing Association: Model Contracts