Five tips to hiring temporary staff

© Anna Bizon – 123RF.com

• Hiring a professional for a short-term project
  
• Filling in for a staff member that is away for a long period due to disability, illness, vacation, paternity or maternity leave
  
• Boosting employee numbers ahead of a busy season
  
• Trying out a new job opening before hiring permanent staff

Hiring temporary staff not only saves you time and money, but also allows you to maintain staff flexibility. However, it also has its disadvantages.

The following are some guidelines for hiring temporary workers:

1. Start early
   If your business always has a huge need for extra workers during certain seasons, don’t wait until that time to begin looking. You need to be on the lookout for qualified people all through the year. If you are anticipating a great demand during Christmas, start evaluating prospective candidates by September. This will allow you to assess their personality and how well they fit with the team. It would be advisable to have a part-time employee database of people who have already worked in your company. Such people will require little orientation and are likely to deliver the best results.

2. Train frequently
   Just like permanent staff, temporary hires should also be trained extensively. You need to ensure that they have product expertise, as well as excellent customer service skills. In addition, temporary employees should be very conversant with the vision, mission and culture of your organisation. Training seasonal staff properly can help boost productivity significantly.

3. Abide by the rules and regulations
   Labour laws such as minimum wage, discrimination, harassment, overtime and workplace safety are applicable to temporary workers, just as they are to permanent staff. Employers may also be required to pay income tax and unemployment insurance. However, benefits like health insurance and paid leave are usually not applicable for seasonal employees. Since these laws vary from one country to another, you will need to get familiar with the rules and regulations in your location.

4. Think long-term
   Many people in full-time employment began by working part-time for their companies. Therefore, when hiring temporary staff, you need to think of how you can retain the best talent for the long-term. Carefully observe their performance and create a database for future employment needs. This will help you make well-informed hiring decisions when a full-time position needs to be filled.

5. Work with recruitment agencies
   Quite often, the need for a temporary worker is unexpected. This means that you might not have the time to begin looking for qualified people. If you don’t have a database of good talent, the other option would be to seek the services of a temporary staffing agency. Since most of these agencies screen and train their staff, you are likely to find a quality employee for your company. In addition, temporary staffing agencies handle all the paperwork involved in the hiring process, thus saving your valuable time and money.