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How to Hire Temporary Employees (A Complete Guide)

McKenna Janzen | Sep 22, 2021

Whether you’re filling an open role because a member of your staff is on leave, or you need to hire more workers to keep up with seasonal demand, at GigSmart, we know hiring temporary employees can be a successful strategy to keep your business running smoothly. So, we put together this comprehensive guide to tell you everything you need to know about hiring temporary employees. 

Before we dive in, it’s important to note we may use the term “temporary employee,” but the temporary workers hired on the GigSmart Get Workers platform are all 1099 workers (independent contractors), and not employees working directly for the businesses who is hiring them temporarily. You should familiarize yourself with the difference between an employee and an independent contractor to ensure you’re hiring the right people in the right way for your business.

Reasons Why Your Business Needs Temporary Employees 

Every business has its own reasons for hiring temporary employees. For example, some experience increased seasonal demand around holidays, others hire project-based workers who have a particular skill set, and still others might need a temporary replacement for an employee who called in sick for the day. 

Consider the possibility that temporary hires can turn into permanent ones. Utilizing workers for temp-to-hire or contract-to-hire positions gives you the ability to develop a relationship with workers before offering them a permanent position. And unlike other gig economy apps, GigSmart encourages great workers to seek out full-time employment whenever a business requester has the ability to hire them permanently. For a small direct hire fee, you can convert any great worker into a full-time hire.

How to Hire Temporary Employees: Step By Step

There are several different ways to hire temporary employees. You could use a temp agency or staffing agency, which often keeps resumes of several different types of workers on hand, but will also charge a fee beyond the worker’s salary. 

GigSmart Get Workers is also a great platform for finding temporary workers in a wide variety of industries. Once you create a free Get Workers account, you will have access to thousands of pre-vetted candidates in any field you choose. 

Here are the steps to hire temporary workers using GigSmart’s Get Workers staffing platform – and many of these tips will be helpful for your company’s hiring process, even if you don’t have a free Get Workers account:

Determine Your Talent Needs

First, figure out what you need your temporary employee to do — like what skills are required to get the job done and how long you plan to hire them for. It’s important to set expectations for the temporary employee as early as possible, so make sure you have these details clearly defined down before you begin the hiring process. 

Post Your Gig Description

Once you have finalized the responsibilities of your position, you can post it inside the Get Workers platform. You can post a free Shift Gig to start sourcing hourly candidates to work shifts ASAP or up to 30-days in advance. Need someone today? Don’t worry, we’re a great solution for hiring temporary workers on short-notice, even in the unfortunate circumstance you’re left scrambling for someone last minute.

You can post a free Shift Gig to start connecting to hourly workers right from your Get Workers account. To get started, tap the orange create button and follow the prompts all the way through until your post is published. If you need any additional help, check out this user guide that shows you everything you need to know about posting a Shift Gig.

Screen and Review Applicants

Don’t skimp on screening workers or conducting background checks just because you are hiring someone short term. You can use Get Workers to view candidate profiles, read reviews left by other requesters, or to better understand an applicant’s work history. Our built-in background checks ensure that your temporary hires will always be vetted from the start. 

Too busy to manage the hiring process? That’s okay too. GigSmart’s Auto-Hire feature will take care of the screening and reviewing for you. Simply turn Auto-Hire on (it’s a toggle available when you create a Shift Gig) and GigSmart will make sure the right number of workers show up to your job site to complete the job.

Send an Offer

If you’re taking care of the hire yourself, it is time to send them an offer! Once offers are out, workers will be asked to confirm they’re still available to work your shift. After they accept, they’ll be hired and your Gig address with be visible to them. Next, you’ll want to use Get Workers to manage them on the date of your Gig, as well as to finalize all of their timesheet details so they’re promptly paid.

Onboard Your Shift Gig Workers

Now that you’ve found the ideal temporary hire, take the necessary steps to onboard them. Obviously, the onboarding process will vary wildly depending on the role, but there are a few key things to keep in mind:

  1. Train temporary employees on the skills most relevant to their position. Onboarding will likely have to occur faster for temporary employees than it normally would for full-time employees, so focusing their onboarding on only the most relevant details will move the process along efficiently.
  2. Introduce temporary workers to your permanent employees. Even though they will only be there for a short while, it is important that the new employee has some contacts among their coworkers, and this will be doubly useful if the position is a temp-to-hire one.
  3. Check in with temporary hires early and often. If they are not performing up to your standards, it may be time to try another temporary hire to ensure you’re using the best worker for the position.

Do’s and Don’ts of Hiring Temporary Labor

Now that we’ve covered the steps of hiring for a temporary position, let’s dive into the common pitfalls of the hiring process. 

Do

  • Hire quickly. Temporary workers may only work at a company for a few days or months (or to fill an urgent need), so it’s important to complete the hiring process quickly.
  • Outline job expectations before hiring. Clarity is key here. You want to make sure any temporary hires can hit the ground running as they join your business.
  • Consider long-term opportunities. Does it make sense to make the temporary position a permanent one after an evaluation period? Do you plan to offer a full-time role to temporary workers if they excel your expectations? These are all important questions to consider as part of the hiring process.

Don’t

  • Skimp on background checks and references. Even though the hiring process should be quick, when it comes to background checks, you should treat your temporary workers like your regular employees. 
  • Forget to consult state laws. Make sure you understand the legal process for hiring temporary workers in your state, as well as the benefits you are liable to provide for temps who work above a certain number of hours. 

Pros and Cons of Hiring Temporary Workers  

Let’s talk about the pros and cons specific to hiring temporary workers or seasonal staff. 

Pros

  • The capacity to evaluate a worker’s suitability for a permanent job before hiring them.
  • An increase in staff support during key periods of high demand.
  • The ability to hire people with niche skills on a by-project basis.
  • Lower employer costs for employee benefits. 

Cons

  • Temps are more likely to make mistakes due to their shortened onboarding/training period.
  • You may experience less reliability and commitment from temporary workers.

Hire Temporary Workers Fast with GigSmart

GigSmart takes the hassle out of hiring temporary staff and provides you with the flexibility you need to hire the right person for your role. We will be with you the whole way  — from sourcing, to hiring, managing, and even paying hourly workers. Post a Shift Gig, receive candidates (they can even be background checked), and then send an offer all with Get Workers. 

And if you prefer a staffing agency to handle hiring for you, GigSmart offers managed services with our staffing support team, who will take care of everything from sourcing candidates to interviewing. We have thousands of candidates with an extensive variety of skills available. Just make an account and get started in minutes!

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