As more and more employees move away from physical workspaces to hybrid or remote models, the evolving hiring trends are evident. The evolution involves newer employment models where full-time resources are replaced by contractual staff.
As per the American Staffing Association, over three million temporary and contract workers work for American staffing agencies every week. According to Gartner, 32% of organizations are substituting contingent workers, such as freelancers, contract workers, and temporary staff, for full-time employees in an effort to cut labor costs.
Contractual work is an embedded work practice in most industries today. The “gig economy,”, which is described as a labor market where temporary contracts or freelance work predominates over full-time employment, symbolizes social, cultural, and economic transformation. In order to accommodate changing lifestyles and personal commitments, particularly in the post-COVID era, more and more workers are offering their talents on demand and participating in the gig economy. As per a survey by Deloitte, in the US alone, more than 57 million, or 36% of the workforce, identify themselves as gig workers.
The opportunity lies in making the most of your hiring skills to attract the top temporary workers and obtain the crucial flexibility required for managing market trends. However, given the sheer number of people who want to participate in the gig economy, it might be quite difficult to hire high-quality temporary employees.
Below are the guidelines for hiring dependable contract staff who will add value to your business.
Start the employment process early by investing in the necessary resources.
You can post your advertisements on an industry website. By doing so, you’ll be certain to encounter people with a genuine interest and passion in the desired domain.
Compose a detailed job description.
Create a job description that gives a thorough overview of the vacant position. Include the KRAs so the candidates can clearly understand the expectations and what the role entails in making an informed decision. Gauge whether an applicant is keen on this position. Mention in the job description if you intend to convert the contract position to a full-time role soon.
Employee referrals are important.
Candidates chosen via employee recommendations have typically been proven to perform better than their competition and fit the company’s culture better.
Ask the appropriate interview questions.
It is crucial to use a thorough screening procedure when interviewing temporary personnel because you won’t be giving them substantial training or a probationary period, which could lead to complications later. During the interview, you may ask questions such as:
- What sort of temporary work experience do you have?
- Why do you want to work for this organization?
- Have you ever had to work on a holiday? If you require them to work throughout the holidays, give them appropriate justification for your policy of working throughout the holidays.
- How did you approach challenging circumstances at your previous job?
- What makes you the right candidate for this job?
- Will you ever encounter any scheduling conflicts while working for this role?
You can tell if a candidate is the right one for the job based on how they respond to these questions.
Employ staff who share the values of your company.
It will ensure that they are committed enough to deliver their best during their short tenure for the organization’s success.
Always quote competitive compensation.
If possible, offer more than the competitors to attract the best talent in the market.
Always run a pre-employment background check on your contract staff.
When you screen these candidates and get the desired outcomes, you should be confident of your selected candidate. Hire a reliable and efficient background screening vendor such as cFIRST to ensure the authenticity of the candidate.
Avail of the services of an employment agency.
Using an employment agency is a simple and effective way to find temporary employees without being involved in tedious legwork and administrative tasks. A competent agency ensures minimal hiring risks.
Hire employees with strategic skill sets.
For any ongoing short-term task that you need more help with, search for contract staff that has the necessary training and experience to handle it. Hence, you can bring in expertise and experience that you may not already have on board.
Always pay attention to temporary employee insurance.
For both full-time employees and temporary employees, you are legally required to pay for employers’ liability insurance. You will be protected from the compensation demands made by temporary workers in the event of illness or injury suffered by the employee during office time.
Before you hire contract staff, educate yourself on the applicable employment regulations.
Knowing the federal and state rules governing the hiring of temporary employees is essential for recruiters.
When looking for temporary workers, offering benefits like shadowing someone above them or learning a new skill may not be the first thing that comes to mind. However, these benefits make your job stand out, and you’ll eventually find a much more deserving candidate. You may also provide these candidates with additional insights to help them advance their careers, making the offer more appealing to them.
The work and employment landscape necessitate candidate assessment and recruitment agencies to keep up with the latest trends and have the systems and tools in place to support such on-demand employment options. By associating with AI-based candidate engagement and assessment platforms that specialize in contract staffing, such as COGBEE, you leverage your candidate database and engage with both the parties involved throughout the assignment duration.
