Temporary employees are hired to assist employers to meet business demands yet allow the employer to avoid the cost of hiring a regular employee. Sometimes, it is the expectation of the employer that if the temporary employee is successful, the temporary employee will be hired.
Most frequently, though, hiring temporary employees serves a business purpose for the company and the objective is to hire temps rather than taking on the cost of a regular employee. Business purposes include: seasonal customer demand, temporary surges in manufacturing orders, employees on sick or maternity leave, and short-term, clearly defined work such as a census worker.
Temporary employees allow employers to maintain a cushion of some job security in employment for regular workers. The temporary employees can be let go first in a business or economic downturn.
Temporary employees work part or full-time. They rarely receive benefits or the job security afforded regular staff. A temporary assignment can end at any time depending on the employer’s needs. In other ways, temporary employees are often treated like regular employees and attend company meetings and events.
Temporary employees are hired directly by the company or they are obtained from a temporary staffing agency. If an agency provides the temporary employee, the employer pays a fee over and above the compensation collected by the employee. Temporary employees, who work through an agency, may have paid benefits such as health care insurance. These employees remain the employee of the agency, not the employee of the company where they are placed.
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