Pros and cons of flexible staffing

- Have you noticed that an increasing number of your competitors are using the services of temporary employees and contractors? Have you wondered if you should be jumping on the bandwagon, too? The staffing industry has been around for decades, and initially, temp positions focused on low-level, light industrial, and administrative positions, but now, temporary employees and contractors are highly skilled, educated, experienced, and work in virtually all industries. According to Career Builder's annual job forecast for 2017 and beyond, there was a renewed focus on the temporary and contract workforce. It's being driven by the competitive talent market, shifting labor force, and employers like you wanting greater flexibility with your staffing needs. Hiring temp workers or contractors isn't the best decision for everyone, but it has proven advantages. Let's look at the pros and cons. First, you can fill your jobs quickly, and with reduced risk. Imagine if you needed to hire someone immediately, but didn't have time to recruit, screen resumes, or interview. You could call a staffing company who has access to networks of qualified candidates they've recruited, interviewed, and pre-qualified. Second, you can easily increase or decrease your workforce as needed. Instead of hiring someone full-time, you can hire a temporary employee or contractor for a specific period of time to complete the projects or tasks you need done. If you are not satisfied with performance, you request a replacement. The third advantage is that you can find top talent. Many contractors are highly skilled professionals who can complete high level projects. Finally, hiring temporary employees or contractors can save you money. The hourly rate might be higher when you go through a staffing firm, but you don't pay for benefits or vacation, and you don't worry about unemployment claims when they leave. It also offsets the cost of paying your full-time employees overtime. Now, let's review some drawbacks of hiring temporary employees or contractors. First, whenever you hire someone new, you have to provide training to get them up to speed and help them be productive. Next, there could be a higher likelihood for safety issues, because even highly skilled temps and contractors are not familiar with your specific work environment. Proper training is crucial to prevent accidents, and it's often provided by the staffing firm. Third, temporary employees and contractors often do not have the time to integrate with your full-time employees, and your core employees may resent the new workers and hesitate to invest time or collaborate with employees who won't be around long-term. So, as you can see, there are some pros and some cons, but if you can effectively manage your temporary employees and contractors and their learning process is embraced as part of hiring them, the pros almost always outweigh the cons.