The Pros and Cons of Working a Temp. Job

Finding full-time, engaging and rewarding work can be an incredibly hard task, and a long journey for some people - I should know, I have been trying myself for several years. An option that has always been available to job-seekers facing this dilemma is the world of temporary (or temp.) contractor work. It's an attractive and flexible option, but many people may be leery of this type of traditionally unstable work environment, or simply have questions and concerns about the positives and negatives that are involved. As an experienced temporary contractor of over three years and many job placements, I will try and alleviate some fears and answer some questions about this unique field in question.

The first thing that comes to mind when considering any type of work, be it permanent or temporary, is to remember to be flexible about the work you are willing to do. All passion and specific career focus aside, it's been written that in order to remain employed and always have a job, one should keep their definition of an "acceptable job" on a sliding scale. What this means, essentially, is that while a possible available job may have less benefits that a previous one, or be slightly different work that isn't as thrilling as something you've done before, if it offers job security, chances to learn, chances to grow or move, networking opportunities, a steady paycheck, and more, your range of an acceptable job should definitely include this opportunity, even if its less pay or different work than what you have done before. Otherwise, you may find yourself derailed in your job search by the "Golden Handcuff" syndrome, which is basically a jobseeker that won't accept a newly offered job because it doesn't pay as well, or have as nice of benefits, as a previous job, and is "handcuffed" to a certain level of pay. The basic rule is, all jobs should be considered independently, and on their own merits, as to what they offer, and what they require of you to change/sacrifice. Be flexible, and you will find yourself more often employed than not.

This ties in nicely to the world of temp. work. In this field, the old adage "Beggars cannot be choosy" can often be used. Temp. work can be very volatile and dynamic, with job opportunities coming and going literally every day. They range from office and administration, to management, to sales and sales support, to janitorial work and warehouse support or call center support. If you are as flexible as you can be, you should have no trouble finding a temporary position to begin work in. However, because the range of temp. work is so wide and sporadic, it's very possible, and probable, that you will face many jobs that are very unappealing, or possibly not even a good fit. Take each job into consideration at each time, and approach them with the idea that this will be money in the bank, experience on your resume, and ultimately, it won't be permanent.

If the idea of temp. work is appealing to you, here are some Pros and Cons that I have to offer based on my personal years of temping experience.

Pros:

1. Have a paying job. This first one is easy - a temp. job allows you to be employed and have an income. Often, if you work long enough at a temp. job, they will come with part-time benefits as well, such as sick leave, PTO, etc. But there is a greater benefit to simply having a paying job and earning money for bills, debt, pleasure, etc. There is the equally important sense of self-worth that comes with being employed. It allows a person to feel like he or she is a contributing member to society, and gets a person up, out, and involved in doing something. This is extremely important to feel, especially in tough economic times.
2. Learn a plethora of new skills. Along with having an income, having a temp. job will often allow you to learn many new skills to add to your repertoire, in addition to honing and increasing your current skills. These sometimes involve soft skills, such as customer service, time management, attention to detail, etc. But often, you'll learn hard skills as well, such as how to operate new technology, or learn new software, which is a great benefit to highlight on your resume.
3. A range of responsibility. This is often the most flexible of bullet points, but when you start a temp. job, as in any job, you will have a range of responsibility in your position. Often, however, there is less responsibility given to a temporary worker than one who is full time. While this isn't necessarily something to celebrate (and I'm not implying that you won't have any responsibility, which you will), this may in fact alleviate some of the stress and anxiety that often goes along with starting a new job. Usually, temp. contractors are brought in to help out with extra workload, sometimes to bring in specific job skills, but the work is generally left at that. Therefore, the more stressful, demanding, and pressure-inducing jobs are left to others, allowing you to simply come in, do your work to the best of your ability, and leave, all within a non-stressful environment.
4. Meet new people all the time. This is a fantastic benefit of a temp. job - when you start, everyone you work with is new to you. Therefore, not only do you get to practice and hone your personal skills, but you get to take advantage of the single greatest benefit of working at many different places and meeting many new people: networking. When you finish your current assignment, you may have already made a strong enough connection to someone in the workplace that will allow you to transition into a new job, either with the company where you temped, or elsewhere. Meeting new people is a fantastic benefit of temp. work.
5. Can lead to full-time employment. As with meeting you people, working temp. jobs can often lead to full-time employment with the company where you are temping. Often times, companies will hire from within to replace any current openings, and often they will look to the pool of temp. candidates as well as their current full-time employees. There are many benefits to simply being "in" a company, and having full "face time", being visible, and allowing yourself the chance to showcase your skills and abilities to management for a possible hire into a full-time position.

Cons:

1. The job will end. This is the first, and biggest, con. Unless you do in fact get offered a job while temping, the very nature of this field of work is transitional, and temporary - taking a temp. job means that it will in fact end, and so will the money, benefits, and engagement. It's best to start looking for a new temp. job roughly two weeks before your current one ends, to try and fill any void of unemployment.
2. You end up doing work you hate. This is always a possible problem, because although keeping your range of "acceptable jobs" open means you should generally always be employed, it can certainly mean that you will be employed doing a job that you simply do not like - at all. When or if this occurs, it's best to keep as positive as you can, and focus on all the happiness in your life, such as being employed, making money, etc. Focusing on the negative of doing something you do not enjoy will only increase your stress and anxiety.
3. Over-qualified and bored. Another pitfall of temp. work is the fact that you can often find yourself in a position where you're over-qualified for the work that you'll be doing. This can lead to boredom, lack of energy, and even a drop in your level of good work, because you lack motivation. While this can sometimes occur in the temp. field, know that there are ways to combat this: again, remain positive in your demeanor; do the best you can at what you do, no matter how menial the task; and ask your managers if there are other projects or duties that you can do, to try and alleviate some of the boredom, and make use of specific talents or skills you have - this will be especially appreciated.
4. Shoddy equipment. This may be a bit extreme, but there is the chance that you will be working with sub-par equipment during a temporary placement. This could include chairs, desk, computer equipment, etc., or simply lacking certain materials you may need to do your job better - anything from tape dispensers to hand sanitizer, which may not be necessary items, but might make things easier. The mentality sometimes is to not supply "the temp." with additional/extra items, due to the fact that the job is itself temporary, and therefore not worthy of additional financial input. If this is the case, just try to make due with what is provided, and if need be, put in a request for additional materials.
5. Condescension towards temporary contractors. While it's an ugly truth, it must be said: at times, some employees can tend to speak down, or condescend, towards temporary workers - they seem them somehow as not worthy of their time, full attention, or full respect. While it should go without saying that if you ever experience full, overt discrimination, complete disrespect, or are ever made to feel extremely uncomfortable, you should visit your HR department and temp. office contact immediately, there may be times when individuals treat you with a modicum of respect, but nothing else. They may in fact come off as cold-shouldered towards you, leave you out of open conversations, never seek your opinion, and otherwise act disinterested or unflatteringly towards you, simply because you are not a "full time employee". While this is indeed a sad state of affairs to deal with, it's probably best to simply deal with these individuals professionally and cordially, and leave it at that. And then ask yourself: if this is how they treat someone based simply on his or her employment status, are they worth your friendship in the first place?

Ultimately, like any job out there, a temporary work assignment can be as filling and rewarding as any full-time position - it all comes down to what you put into it, and how positive your attitude is. And while there are certainly negatives that come along with the temp. field, forewarned is forearmed - knowing the negatives can allow you to adjust your expectations going into temp. work, and may allow you to find happiness and fulfillment as you gain new experience, earn income, and help make a difference at a company or organization that really needs your help.

And who knows - you may just receive a full-time offer while you're doing it.