Employing Temporary Workers

To get the most out of your temporary worker, it's important that right from the start they feel comfortable within your team. We've put together a few tips to help you ensure that they feel a part of your team quickly so that they can work efficiently and effectively.

First, it may seem obvious, but welcome the temporary worker to your department and remember to let them know who they should report to on a daily basis.

Introduce the temporary worker to the different members of your team. Don't forget to explain the hierarchy of the organisation and who is who within it.

Give the temporary worker some background information on your company. Explain why they are there and what you expect from them. Also discuss what you are hoping they'll be able to achieve. Outline how you expect the temporary worker to conduct themselves while working on your site e.g. use of mobile phones, internet, web, etc.

Explain the office hours and what hours they'll be doing.

Show the temporary worker where the loos are and where they can get tea, coffee or other refreshments.

Remember to show appreciation and gratitude to the temporary worker for work well done. Just because they are temporary doesn't mean they don't appreciate hearing from you when they have done well in their job.

Try and remind yourself the more you encourage a temporary worker while they are working on your behalf, the more likely it is they will want to please you. It is vital that you look after your temporary worker as you would your permanent staff. That way you are more likely to get better results.

If you are hiring temporary workers for sales or marketing roles, encourage them; make them feel good for the job they are doing. If you have a temporary worker who is getting fantastic responses on the phone and is closing deals, ask yourself what you are achieving if you dock 5 min off a timesheet for a temp being 5 minutes late that morning.

For example, we had a client who had a great temporary worker who was closing deals at a great rate. They were doing so well they completed the task 3 days ahead of the planned booking, having been at this company for three months. The company decided to end the contract without notice as all the work had been completed, but thanked the temporary worker for all the great work they had done. The temporary worker was quite upset to find themselves without work mid-week especially having done so well for the company. Two weeks later the company asked us to arrange for that same temporary worker to go back as they liked their work so much. Sadly, the temporary worker rejected the opportunity, as they felt undervalued by the company. This demonstrates it's worth considering the bigger picture.

If you think an incentive may help, there are lots of ways to incentivise staff. Although this is not always necessary, nobody will ever refuse one. You can pay additional hours, let them clock off early while still getting paid or you can arrange to pay them a commission either via the agency or direct yourselves.

Whatever you decide, the most important thing to remember is that the temporary worker is there for you. They would rather be in a happy work environment than a poor one, so the better you make it for them, the better the return will be to you.

A fundamental responsibility for us, the agency, is to pay the temporary worker on time. In order for us to do this, it is vital we receive the temporary worker's timesheet back at our office promptly for us to process their payment. Please be considerate of this fact when making yourself available to authorise the timesheet. If you know you are not going to be available to authorise a timesheet at a given time, make arrangements so that the temporary worker is not penalised for this. Is it realistic that a temporary worker goes that extra mile for you, if they are not getting paid on time because you forgot to sign their timesheet?