The Professional Employer

Temporary staffing services provide employees who possess specific skills to client companies for brief and often fixed periods of time.  While specific jobs may last from a few hours to several years, it is estimated the average tenure of temporary and contract employees range from 3 to 5 months.  Jobs range from administrative assistants to CEOs and are available in virtually all occupations.

This arrangement can provide a client company with needed help during peak demand periods, staffing shortages, or vacations of regular employees, without requiring the time, expense, and long-term commitment of hiring a new employee.  Temporary employment firms typically undertake hiring and firing decisions, issue paychecks, withhold payroll taxes, and make contributions for unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation, and Social Security for their own employees.  Client companies simply describe their staffing needs and time frame, then pay a set hourly rate to the temporary employment agency for the services of a “temp.”

Services provided by a staffing company can include temporary help, permanent placement, temporary-to-permanent placement, long-term and contract help, training, human resources consulting, and professional employment organization (PEO).