1. Some perspectives about temporary staffing
The temporary staffing industry is now beginning to grow again after losing about thirty
seven percent of its work forces during the recessionary periods between 2007 and 2009.
The recent turnaround in the temporary staffing industry can be viewed as an indicator of a
greater economic turnover in the U.S. economy as a whole. As per the Bloomberg survey
the industrial production in the U.S. rebounded to 0.4% in September -2012 after a steep
drop in the prior month. This increase indicates that manufacturers are regaining their
foothold. The temporary workforce is growing with the six of the largest store chains in the
United States planning to add about 300,000 temporary workers during the Christmas
season to account for the expected higher volume of shoppers.
The retail sale is expected to increase by about 4.1% to $586.1 billion and is a big boost
after the severe damage that the industry suffered during the recessionary periods of 2007
and 2009. Retailers such as Wal-Mart, Target Corp and other large American retailers are
planning to add about thousands of temporary employees during the holiday season. The
temporary staffing industry devastated by the recession is the first industry among the
employment sector to show significant growth when the economy is beginning to show the
signs of recovery. The Bureau of Labor Statistics or BLS reported in July-2010 that U.S.
Staffing companies added more new jobs than any other sector when the recovery process
began.
Some of the clients in the temporary staffing showed an average payroll growth of about
twenty percent and some of them climbing as high as thirty percent growth. Most
businesses during the slow growth process of the economy looks for flexibility to help them
ride over any future bumps in the economy. Thus, many employers are engaging
temporary staffing companies or firms to fill up the open positions. Majority of companies
are looking to downsize employees at many different levels and in some instances
companies are not reluctant to fill the top management slots with employees from
temporary staffing firms. The main reason for such an option is flexibility and saving costs
during the recessionary periods.
Temporary staffing also paves way to full time employment in the sense that cautious
employers are using temporary staffing services to try out employees before hiring them on
a full-time basis. As the economy improves, temporary employees may prove boon to the
employers as many employers may take them (temp employees) as full time employees.