Job-Hunting Through Temp Agencies

Last week we talked about researching the job market through cold calling. Today we discuss the method of using a temp agency, or temporary employment agency, to help you land a job.

In the last decade or two temporary employment agencies have become a mainstay in helping people to find good, solid corporate work. Through an intimate understanding of the job market temp agencies are in the unique position to pair employee with employer - pair strengths with needs, experience with expectation - thereby creating an excellent employee/employer match. Just about anyone you talk to today has had some sort of experience with a temporary agency, and while some might describe this relationship as, at times, strained, many, if not most, find it rewarding, and, under the right circumstances, the perfect resource for "getting a foot in the corporate door." If employer and employee turn out to get along, (and the temp agency gives its nod of approval) a temporary position can quickly translate into permanent corporate placement.

One aspect in working for a temp agency that many find difficult to understand is the fact that, even though you may be working at a company, you are still the "bonded" employee of your temp agency. The company pays the temp agency for your work, the agency takes its cut and returns your percentage.

In this sense, the operational model for most temporary agencies goes back a long way ...way back to one of the oldest professions in history. It has been said the the earliest of "escort", or "companion" services incorporated what we now understand to be temp workers. By matching employer with employee, or by "putting the worker out to turn a trick," the agency, or pimp, would take a monetary cut on the service provided by his or her temp and then hand over what he or she felt was adequate compensation.

Today, as the business world continues to flourish, so will temp agencies right along with it!

KWA

And thanks, Decateur for your previous post. We'll all be looking forward to the next!