What Everyone Should Know About Staffing Services

Millions of people will be placed into new jobs and careers by temporary employment services this year. Many companies have turned to staffing services over the past two decades for assistance with filling openings. Temporary jobs provide people with a way to enter into the workforce, provide supplemental income, and sometimes bridge to full-time employment. Temporary workers are employed and paid by the temporary staffing service and are then contracted out to clients for either a fee or an agreed hourly wage. Many companies choose to use temporary workers full time on an ongoing basis, instead of employing a permanent staff, who may receive higher wages and benefits. The company may also save money because workers compensation and unemployment are paid by the staffing service. As a result, the overwhelming majority of workers hired by temporary staffing services are temporaries; not very many permanent positions are available. While there are reputable services to choose from there are also a few that may not give you the information you need to make a well informed decision about where you will be working. Read on to learn more about the opportunities offered by these services and more about how they work.

When you are approached with a job offer by a temporary staffing representative, you will need to know what type of opportunity it is. There are direct hire opportunities, temp-to-hire position openings and temporary employment offers. You need to understand what these different types of positions are.

Temporary Position: The employee does not work any set amount of hours. The employee is also not considered for benefits with a temporary opening. These positions can be for a set period of time, possibly the completion of a project. You may also hear phrases such as short term temporary and long term temporary. These openings are still considered temporary no matter how long the duration.
Temp-To- Hire Position: Employees can be considered for full time employment after a "probation" period determined by the client and staffing agency. Could be 30 days to a year. There is no guarantee that you will be hired as a full time employee. The temp-to-hire period gives the client the opportunity to see how well you do your job, how dependable you are and ultimately lets them determine if you would be an asset as a full time employee. This is a very popular employment option with many companies.
Direct Hire Position: Openings in which the employee is hired directly by the client and paid by the client. They are not employed or paid by the staffing agency. Some staffing agencies may charge a fee to the employee, investigate these opportunities very carefully. In most cases, direct hire options are used for highly skilled positions.

When you look in your help wanted section of the newspaper, you will likely see recruiting advertisements placed by local staffing agencies. These are ads placed by many agencies to bring in new applicants that may be potential workers for the agency. Investigate these advertisements very carefully; many of these ads are placed without a real opportunity for the applicant to be placed into the positions advertised. They are merely recruiting tools used by the service.

When you sign up as an employee for a temporary staffing agency, make sure to actually read your paperwork and the forms you sign your name to. A staffing service can manipulate employees in many ways by having them sign policies and procedures specific to their service. Many agencies have policies on wages, workers compensation and availability. If you are approached with an offer for employment you should find out:

1. What type of offer is it? Temporary, temp-to-hire or direct hire?
2. What will I be paid? When and how will I be paid?
3. What shift will I be working and how is overtime paid?
4. Will my hours remain the same throughout this assignment?
5. Will I need safety gear? If so, who provides it?

You will also need to know job specifics, who you will report to, a description of the job you will be performing and other company or assignment specific details. This information should be given to you immediately upon your acceptance of a position opening.

Another important consideration is to be wary of reporting to a position and being asked to perform duties that were not described to you by your staffing representative. Many companies may try to get you to perform tasks outside the scope of the actual position opening you were hired for. You should always immediately report these incidents to your staffing representative.

There are many wonderful staffing agencies that offer their temporary personnel career opportunities and placement, ongoing training and even health benefits or paid vacations. These are all perks that you should ask about when you visit your local agency. Above all, just as with any other employer, do your homework! Investigate them with the Better Business Bureau and other employees who work for them. You should have plenty of references for a reputable and stable staffing agency before agreeing to perform work for them.