For decades the growth of temporary employment agencies has had a real impact on how rural job markets are taking shape. A 2006 study highlights a consistent rise in part time, low wage jobs over the last several years. It claims that 11 percent of all rural workers hold temporary jobs. These jobs are often found through local temping agencies, which are thriving even in these difficult economic times. A recent piece of legislation, Bill 139, is long overdue. This bill includes new regulations for temping agencies, but it will not prevent all the abuses that take place, especially in rural areas.

I’ve found temping agencies can lend a hand in the short term. Some agencies do provide useful training to unskilled workers. However, abuses can occur with temping agencies that focus on providing unskilled labour to manufacturing facilities in rural areas.

Employers see great advantages in hiring temporary workers. It saves money on employment benefits, wage increases, and even lightens the load for their human resources department.

Every one of these advantages bodes ill for the temp. Temps often get very short notice when work becomes available. He or she will likely be assigned the least desirable tasks that need to be performed, often working in poor conditions.

Theoretically, the dollar value of performing undesirable tasks is determined by the labour market. By contracting temp agencies an employer gains access to a pool of workers who receive the same rate of pay no matter what job they are doing. If the temp arrives at his site and refuses the work assigned to them, they can be sent home so that another more willing temp can perform the same unpleasant work for the same price.

In response to these issues the Provincial government has passed Bill 139. It requires temping agencies to clearly describe work assignments to the employee. The bill prevents temping agencies from charging fees to their employees. It also grants temp workers equal rights to public holiday pay, and proper notification and compensation in case of severance.

Temping agencies can present impediments to the growth of meaningful long-term employment opportunities. Agencies are known for charging their clients a fee for permanently hiring on a temp worker. Bill 139 bans this practice, as long as that worker has been on the same assignment for six months.

While working for these agencies, I’ve encountered temps who have been working at the same site for over a year, still at the same pay, without benefits or job stability. For the entire time, the temping agency has been charging for that worker’s services. Often the temping agency can collect between $20-25 an hour, and give only $10-12 to the worker. Temping agencies in rural areas can often become the sole arbiter of who works and who stays at home. If every factory in a small town starts using temp workers, the agency that provides them has a near monopoly on work opportunities. Anybody seeking work has to abide by their guidelines and schedules. Refusal of any assignment will naturally reduce that worker’s chances of receiving further offers. In fact, some temping contracts state that workers will be terminated if they consistently refuse assignments. This leaves a temp worker with few choices.

As a coup de grâce, there is the common perception that temps are lazy or apathetic. Most often temps are people who are facing hard times, but have taken the initiative to find employment even if it comes with the stresses of job insecurity. Too often their efforts go unrewarded. Bill 139 is a welcome victory for temp workers. However, close regulation and enforcement will be required to keep abuses in check, especially in rural communities.

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Tags: employment, temp agencies, temporary employment

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 18th, 2009 at 5:18 pm and is filed under Economy, employment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.