02/ 12/ 2007
by Charles R. McConnell
Flexible employment, or as it's referred to in some businesses, "non-traditional staffing and scheduling," has become increasingly popular as companies rely more on arrangements than full-time employment for covering certain needs. Economic uncertainties that cause fluctuating labor demands, intense competition and the need to hold operating costs down have made non-traditional means of filling labor needs more appealing.
Today's flexible employment options include flextime arrangements, job sharing, regular part-time employment, per diem employment (a day at a time as needed) and workers "rented" on a short-term basis from agencies that exist for that purpose.
Staffing flexibility can often be supported by the use of temporary help from agencies that specialize in supplying trained personnel specifically to cover short-term need--with "short-term" ordinarily referring to a period not exceeding six months. The employees acquired from a temporary help agency are employees of the agency, not the company using them. There are a number of advantages in using temporary agency employees--"temps" as they're commonly called--including:
- The company is spared the effort and expense of locating, hiring and training employees who will be there for a limited number of weeks or months. This fulfillment of fluctuating needs is one of the strongest reasons for using temporary workers.
- Employees trained in certain specific occupations can be used to cover critical vacancies until the company can successfully recruit to fills its needs. These trained individuals can also be used to cover for illnesses, vacations and leaves of absence. Presently in some businesses the key reasons for using specific kinds of temps are the shortage of adequate staff and the difficulties experienced in recruiting critically needed personnel.
- Nearly all agency temps come already trained in the basics of the job and may require only minimal orientation.
- Although the company pays a premium--the rate paid to the agency for a temp includes the person's pay and benefits and the agency's profit--this alternative can be more economical than paying overtime premium to regular staff to cover a short-term need.
- It's not necessary to be concerned with the details of payroll and benefits; in fact, an entire crew of temporaries from the same agency can be covered by a single payment to the agency every week or two.
On the down side of employing temps, some potential difficulties may or not surface, depending on people and personalities. Occasionally the company may engage a temp whose attitude and outlook run contrary to the culture of the organization. However, this can occur in hiring regular employees as well--though perhaps not as readily, if screening processes are effective--but the temp who doesn't fit in will not be there long, and an ill-suited temporary arrangement can be ended early.
There may also be something of an illusion of excess cost in using temps because the full cost of a temp is fully visible, while the greater actual costs of recruiting, hiring and training are largely hidden. Also the necessity of "breaking in" an unfamiliar face that's only going to disappear soon can engender some resistance to the use of temps.
The per diem or "optional" kind of employee is probably the most economical and useful sort of temp. Per diem employees simply work when needed and are usually paid a slightly higher hourly rate than regular employees because they receive no benefits. The problems with per diems lie in obtaining enough of them--often they are retired workers or others who wish to cut back to an occasional day--and developing enough of these who will be available to work when called.
Concerning agency temps, you should limit arrangements for their use to periods of less than six months. Under federal regulations anyone who works for an organization for a period exceeding six months must be considered an employee for purposes of earning credit toward retirement. Once this requirement is encountered, the job might just as well be filled with a regular employee. In any case, a temporary engagement that has gone six months should be examined closely for alternative ways of meeting the need.
The principal criterion for the proper use of temporary help is the short-term nature of the need. Although it is often the best solution to a staffing need in both a practical and economic sense, the prolonged use of temps to meet a long-term need is never as economical as hiring regular staff.
