Monday, April 21, 2014

The rise of temporary employment

For many Americans, 'temp' work becomes permanent way of life

More and more businesses are starting to hire more temporary employees.  The article makes the claim that this is more than a temporary cycle of a recovering economy, it is becoming the new way to run a business.  Traditionally, according to this article, as the economy has become more stable, permanent hiring replaces temporary hiring -- however this article believes is not a trend but a permanent change.  Do you agree with this?  Or do you think businesses will move back toward hiring more permanent workers in the coming months and years?

On another note, the article points out the advantages to businesses for using temporary employees, but what are the disadvantages?  Additionally, what, if any, are the advantages to the workforce when businesses use temporary employment (the disadvantages are made quite clear)?

4 comments:

  1. I don't think there are too many advantages for employees on temp employment. They don't get benefits and lose their ability to negotiate for them and better wages. In short, all their power is taken.

    I am hopeful that the trend will die out though. The most successful companies have happy employees. High retention also is good because it saves costs on training and development over time, and builds expertise in the workplace.

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  2. I don't know about advantages to employees, the whole situation/trend seems pretty grim to me. Clearly, if this trend continues even after the economy recovers the businesses will also be affected because lack of permanency for workers will eventually lead to less work motivation. Worker productivity will reduce because worker know that theta's not their permanent job anyway. I really do hope that its not a permanent thing and that it's just a way for businesses to deal wit this financially difficult times.

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  3. perhaps an upside of temporary employment can be for a niche target audience. i'm thinking younger people, students in high school and college. i've been a temp in both high school and college which has helped me learn fast in a short time, diversify my experience bank and branch out and explore opportunities specific to my interest and passion.

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  4. This topic is actually really interesting for me because I think temporary employment can bring both positive and negative consequences. In a positive view, companies can use temporary employment to reduce costs and increase the number of professional workers needed during specific times. In a negative view, temporary workers may receive less benefits than those working full time because of their status within the company.

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