Whatever happened to the idea of a job for life and a gold watch presentation at your retirement? It seems that job flexibility, part time working and portfolio careers are now the order of the day and at the forefront of this trend in job mobility is the concept of temporary working.
In fact, 5th - 9th June sees National Temporary Workers Week – a campaign by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) that highlights the vast numbers of temporary employees in the workplace and recognises the diverse range of industries in which they work.
It’s also worth noting that temporary work is not just the territory of secretarial and administrative staff. Nurses, doctors, lawyers, accountants, financial executives, IT professionals, assembly-line workers, construction and industrial workers all make up a large proportion of the temporary working pool.
So it looks like temporary working is here to stay and it’s a way of working that needs to be taken seriously by employers, particularly given its rising profile and no doubt significant contribution to GDP. Some statistics on the website www.tempweek.uk.com highlight that:
- Turnover in temporary recruitment was £20.3 billion in 2003-2004.
- 1.2 million temporary workers go out on assignment in a typical week.
- 91% of temporary workers believe that temping gives them the flexibility to balance work and personal life.
- 89% of temporary workers believe that temping is a stepping-stone to permanent work where permanent work was wanted.
- 84% of temporary workers believed that temping gave them independence and control over their own destiny.
- 86% of temporary workers believe that temping gives them invaluable experience and the opportunity to learn new things.
- 81% of temporary workers believe that temping gives them the opportunity to work when they want to and the security of having work available when needed.
- 88% believed that temping gave them a variety of work and an opportunity to meet different people.
- 77% of temporary workers felt at least as valued as those doing permanent work.
And the benefits of temporary working are not just felt by the employee. There are significant benefits to the employer too. These include time saving at interview and selection stage, as this is likely to be carried out by a recruitment/staff agency, along with the outsourcing of a number of other recruitment ‘headaches’. A temp who works out well might be offered a full time post – but if they don’t fit in, the employer can give the problem back to the agency, whose task it is to find a replacement.
The REC are making a ‘One in a Million Award’ - the only national award given to recognise excellence within the temporary workforce. Sewell Moorhouse are making our own plans to reward our own ‘top temps’ too, so join in and celebrate National Temporary Workers Week!
For more information, contact Cliff Sewell or Philip Hill at Sewell Moorhouse – an independent and specialised accounting, financial and administrative recruitment consultancy based in Sheffield, Doncaster and Leeds.
CELEBRATE YOUR TEMPORARY WORKERS