What Is Temporary Employment?
Any employee element in a business can be permanent or temporary. Temporary employment is like a revolving door of short-term employment where companies will hire and train staff for a short period of time to fill in the gap where there are higher workload demands than usual. Some businesses may choose to hire temporary staff every month, every quarter, or on an ad hoc basis. There are many reasons why any business may recruit temporary workers, with the advantage of being able to match employee working capacity to the business working capacity.
The advantages of temporary employment are:
There may be disadvantages of temporary employment too. A business will likely have to pay a premium for hiring temporary workers, so from a cost perspective, hiring temporary staff is usually more expensive than a permanent employee. Temporary employment is usually limited for a fixed term or for the duration of an assignment, so businesses may not receive the long-term commitment from their temporary staff. There may also be less loyalty shown to the business as a temporary employee will not have the same benefits and contractual rights as a permanent employee . A business will still need to pay statutory benefits and provide for holidays for temp workers but will not have the same obligations for pension provision, sick pay, maternity leave, family leave and paternity leave for example. That said, a temporary employee might be the solution to the short term increase in work load or seasonal spike that a business faces, rather than committing to a permanent employee.
A business can of course hire permanent employees too. Permanent employment usually means employment is expected to last for an indefinite period of time and the employee can expect continuous and regular periods of work and income for the foreseeable future. A permanent employee will be expected to provide their services to the employer notwithstanding any absence of work, such as sickness absence, strike or other stoppage of work. However, the rationale for hiring temp staff may also depend on business needs, the skill set required and the expected tenure of employment. Temporary employment can work to the advantage of a business where it needs to test the employees skills to see if they fit with the company and if the company can benefit from having that employee on board permanently.
Key Components of a Temporary Employee Contract
Creating a temporary employment contract requires careful attention to the key elements governing its enforceability and durability. A temporary employee typically needs a contract that is clear and strongly worded to avoid confusion over the relationship. The most important aspects of a robust temporary employment contract include:
Duration – Temporary employment contracts can run for a short-term period of from a couple of weeks to months or even years, depending on the needs of the employer. This is the duration of the contract and it must be clearly set out. Automatic renewals are often included in temporary contracts but if the contract is not to be renewed, it must clearly state the reasons why.
Duties – The duties of the employee must be clearly set out in the contract. These must be detailed and can include penalties for non-compliance. Any new developments in the work must also be quickly drafted into the contract to avoid misunderstandings.
Compensation – The amount should be clearly stated so as to avoid any future disputes. It is wise to ensure that the pay proposed meets the minimum wage set out by the relevant authority in accordance with their own rules and regulations. The payday should be clearly established in the contract and if overtime will be paid, this should also be set out clearly in the contract.
Termination clause – If the temporary contract is for a specific period of time, this will end automatically when the time is up. However if there is a probationary period or the agreement is to be terminated early, the notice period must be clearly stated in the contract. Again, under law any employer must not enforce a termination clause that is deemed to be unreasonable.
Legal and Compliance Issues
Considerations juridiques et conformité
Lorsqu’il s’agit de cadres, la loi considère des périodes d’emploi en tant qu’employé continu. Par conséquent, le personnel temporaire travaillant chez le client pendant de longues périodes – même plus d’une année – peut, à un moment ou à un autre, revendiquer un statut permanent.
La directive européenne 99/70CE du 28 juin 1999 s’applique entièrement aux employés temporaires des agences d’intérim. La directive vise à améliorer la protection des travailleurs temporaires comparativement aux employés permanents pendant la période d’intérim.
Le principe fondamental de l’égalité de traitement impose que les conditions de travail des employés temporaires doivent être les mêmes que celles des employés permanents.
Cela signifie que les employés temporaires ont droit aux mêmes, voire mieux, congés de vacances, heures supplémentaires, primes de disponibilité, primes de fin d’année et autres primes.
Par conséquent, l’égalité de traitement entre employés temporaires et employés permanents doit être renforcée dans la convention de l’employé temporaire.
Une clause d’exclusion des prétentions de l’employé temporaire envers la société cliente devrait y figurer à titre d’avertissement. Une telle clause ne doit toutefois pas entrer en clash avec le principe d’égalité de traitement.
Un autre point important est celui de la protection des données. Étant donné que le personnel temporaire amène son propre équipement (téléphone, ordinateur portable et iPad) et s’introduit dans le réseau du client, le contrat devrait contenir des dispositions relatives à la protection des données, le respect de la vie privée, la cession de droits d’auteur des logiciels utilisés et le retrait éventuel de l’appareil du réseau après la fin de la mission.
L’entreprise utilisatrice devrait avoir exigé une clause d’exclusion où elle dit que la société cliente est seule responsable du traitement des données de ses employés temporaires.
La clause doit pouvoir être opposée à un tiers (par exemple une autre société du même groupe). Le client pourrait par exemple se baser sur l’article 31 alinéa 2 du Règlement général sur la protection des données (RGPD).
Differences between a Temporary Contract and a Permanent Contract
Employers may be surprised to learn that the rights of a temporary employee and a permanent employee are usually very similar. There are, however, some important differences.
Temporary and permanent employment contracts will usually have different length terms. A temporary employment contract will typically run for a set period of time, whereas a permanent employment contract does not expire. Permanent employment contracts may include clauses that allow them to be terminated, but there is no need to specify an end date. On the other hand, if a temporary contract does not specify a new end date, the employment relationship would become permanent after the expiration of the term. This can be problematic for employers who are seeking to avoid the pitfalls of long-term employment relationships.
A temporary employee may often have different pay rates, roles and benefits. For example, a temporary employee may be paid a higher hourly rate to compensate for the lack of vacation pay if they do not qualify for statutory vacation under the Employment Standards Act (OSA) as they will not perform work that averages the required 35 hours per week . That said, it is possible to embed any "compensation for the absence of the vacation pay provisions" in the employment contract. It should be made clear to a temporary employee that your organization does not provide vacation pay benefits during the term of employment, and that the temporary employee will not be entitled to severance pay. In some circumstances, vacation pay and/or severance pay would be payable upon termination even in the case of a temporary employee unless a "disguised dismissal" has been found. When severance pay is provided, the temporary employee will also be eligible for Employment Insurance payments on termination.
In the event of a termination, the permanent employee’s entitlements under the employment contract will continue for the duration of the notice period, whereas a temporary employee’s entitlements under the employment contract would end on the last day of work.
Common Issues and Solutions
As with most things in life, the creation and use of employment contracts for temporary staff is not without the odd hiccup. Consider the following common issues and their solutions: Contract renewal: The duration of engagement set out in the employment contract with a temporary employee might come to an end leaving you with the need and desire to retain the services of the employee. Two possibilities might arise. In the first instance, you may just want to hand the employee more or less the same contract for a further specified period and extend the employment. Or, in the second instance, internal circumstances such as the departure of a full time employee or the arrival of an unexpected big project might require your temps to be placed in stationary roles and employed in a more permanent manner. Contract renewal is simple. The parties all sit down once again and agree the terms of the new contract and sign it. However, it is essential that any and all updated details are incorporated. If the period of service is to change reflect the new dates in the contract, If it will change from a fixed term to rolling contracts or vice versa make the necessary amendments to meet the statutory requirements (such as a rolling or rolling to fixed situation) as well as your own business objectives. Any other changes must also be separately addressed and rendered in a fresh contract. The primary example of the second possibility involving stationary roles is an employer facing a situation where some or all of its temps are to become employees of the client company. The solutions to this situation depend entirely on the terms they have agreed with the client company. If they have the right to become employees, the employee is offered a job by the client company at the end of the fixed term and the temps employees become direct employees of the client company but do not automatically move into the same terms of employment they were working. If they are to remain temps think through with the client whether an entirely new contract is appropriate or whether the existing contracts can be varied to meet the changing circumstances. Workplace integration: This scenario revolves around the legislative objective of preventing the exploitation of temporary working and ensuring that temporary workers enjoy the same opportunities as full time employees. There are a number of ways that you can directly influence work integration. The best solution from a workplace integration perspective is to strive to offer salaries that are already competitive within the employment market. Also, provide the opportunity for temps to move into more permanent the roles or temporary work in other departments or within the existing one. This signals to the temps that their work for the employer is a step towards permanent employment once they have proved their worth.
Temporary Worker Employment Trends
The impact of the gig-economy, digitalization and current social movements bodes well for a continued upswing in temporary staffing demand. At a macro level, the gig-economy, facilitated by the digital revolution, is helping to overcome many of the challenges which have long since hampered the recruitment process. In particular, digitalization has made the recruitment process better equipped to handle higher volumes of applicants with recruitment algorithms which have the ability to sift through thousands of resumes in seconds, while at the same time giving less traditional candidates a fairer shot at getting hired by removing the bias inherent in human screening processes. The gig-economy, combined with the digital aspect means that temporary workers are able to get jobs more easily than ever before. If you are a highly skilled temporary worker, not only can you sign up to receive alerts about relevant job opportunities in an instant, but you can also secure roles in your sleep. While it may seem like a stretch, we are not too far off from waking up and seeing an email stating that you got the temporary gig that you blindly applied for at 2am the night before. No effort required! So now that obtaining temporary employment is practically effortless, the focus will be on?
Remuneration It is no secret that pay is the key driving factor behind the type of work that most choose to accept. As freelancers and gig jobs gain popularity , the competition among platforms to attract talent will inevitably see rates rise. Compensation rates for temporary recruitment agencies are already experiencing pressure in this regard. With increased access to more talents with specialized skills, such platforms will have more power to negotiate pay, given how essential it is to attract top talent. However, we are yet to see platforms and agencies be selective enough to force the issue of compensation. For now, it is still up to HR and company profiles to attract top talent. As the gig-economy continues to evolve, temporary workers will be even less dependent on a singular source of income. This will place even more pressure on companies hiring temporary staff, as a result of temporary workers being able to afford to be a little more choosy. We will likely see that workers will start leaving low-paying gigs behind in droves, and some companies will be left to raise rates rather than facing a shortage in talent. The future will undoubtedly show us more trends which will impact the temping world, however HR practices stand to benefit more than any other segment, as a wider pool of talent will afford these recruiters even greater margin for error. The art of recruitment will become even more important, as those who cannot keep up with the digital age fall behind.