So, I’ve been unemployed for two weeks now, and things are getting a little desperate. I’ve submitted my resume for several jobs, but haven’t heard anything backs, so I suppose it’s about time to go to a temp agency. I’ve never been to one before, and I like to be prepared for this sort of thing. Any advice for me?
I temped for years at various companies in various industries. I loved it. I enjoyed the variety and the opportunity to learn new skills. I made good money and was rarely out of work. I met lots of people and for the most part I had a great time temping. Some points to consider:
Go to a larger agency. They get the better gigs. They pay the bigger bucks. There’s more jobs to choose from. That said, don’t be too picky. Your employer needs people to fill these spots so they make money and keep their clients happy. If you are too hard to please, they’ll just stop calling you.
Dress professionally to go to your interview with the agency. You are their bread and butter and you want to put your best foot forward so they know you’re serious about representing them professionally.
Be sure you understand what your agency expects you to do for your compensation. Many companies will try to get temps to do work that’s outside the limit for the amount they are paying the agency for your services. If you’re not sure whether or not a task is part of the agreed-to job description, call your agency and let them clarify. It may mean more money for you!
Some people treat temps like shit. You do not have to take abuse. Do your best to change their negative opinion of temp help, but if anyone is really abusive, call your agency.
You may be excluded from parties and other activities. Most likely, it is a corporate decision and nothing personal.
Call them every day - but no more than once per day - unti you get a job.
In my experience of temping (admittedly this is in the UK but I would imagine it applies) the first job you’re asked to do by an agency you’ve just joined is often pretty crap, on the grounds that they don’t know you from Adam and aren’t going to risk putting you in a good vacancy without some veriried (i.e. from jobs they put you in) prior knowledge of what you’re like as an employee.
That said, if they ask you to do a job that isn’t right for you then don’t be afraid to turn it down. I joined an agency to do office admin/secretarial work with some decent experience and skills/qualifications behind me and the first job I was offered was doing light labour (emptying bins, moving office furniture). I took it as I was desperate for some work but quit after a day as I couldn’t face the prospect of doing this for a length of time. I wasn’t THAT desperate!
Let me reiterate “Call them daily”. The very best agency I ever worked for was horrible about calling me but got me wonderful jobs when I did.
Through unfortunate circumstances, I have to move to Boston on less than 2 days notice. The Robert Half Agency called me a few hours after I applied. I had to come in and do some typing and computer skills tests at a large office. They placed me the same day. The odd thing was that I had an actual professional job covering for someone on extended maternity leave. I was treated with respect and processed millions of dollars in stock profits and investments most most days. I was there in the same job for over 6 months until I got my own IT job that I was to have. The prestigious law firm that I worked in included me in all their parties and outings which were numerous and I had a blast. The bad side was that I made about 1/6 of the money that the person I was covering for did. I couldn’t complain though because that was the best I could hope for at a time.
Temping can work out well although it doesn’t usually pay that much and there aren’t any built in benefits although you can usually buy them.
Temping is a great way to get your foot in the door at many various workplaces. Its becoming more and more common for companies to interview by taking temps and putting them to work and letting the work speak for itself. My longest job was acquired after 2 weeks of temping there, which turned into 2 and a half years (i only lost the job due to the company entering bankrupcy and laying off EVERYONE) and I just acquired a new job by getting called back by a place I temped at last Winter for 2 months, so be absolutely sure to make a good impression and let your manager know that you’d love to come back.
Thanks for all the responses. I get pretty nervous about doing new things, and I like to be as prepared as possible, to mitigate my undue anxiety. Should I expect to go through a standard sort of interview, with STAR questions and all of that?
If I were really smart, I’d move out of my college town, to somewhere that not everybody and their brother has a BA. I graduated over a year ago, and have yet to gain any financial benefits from doing so.
I worked for Robert Half (the non-financial side…I forget the name). Great gigs came from that agency.
Word on the benefits thing. I was on my husband’s insurance so it wasn’t an issue, but they are woefully lacking and expensive from what I hear.
I used to place temps. Here are some things you should keep in mind to keep on good terms with the agency:
Don’t be picky.
Don’t cancel last minute. If you make more work for your counselor on a busy Monday they will never think of you first again. Never.
Don’t be late.
Don’t forget you are the employee of the agency. This means not getting involved in office politics at the client company and it means not discussing money with any of your client co-workers and supervisors.
I also WAS a temp when we moved here from NYC. I got a temp to perm job at a doctor’s office. Then I got a temp to perm job here at the best employer I ever had and I’ve been here almost 11 years… And let me tell you, it wasn’t because I was the world’s best worker. Don’t get me wrong, I was a good worker, but I was also reliable, flexible and pleasant. That was the most important thing.
One of our closest friends is the branch manager of a large Manpower office. She is extremely busy…she started off temping for them, then she saw a job inhouse and took that…then worked her way to branch manager. She does quite well.
In this economy the temp agencies are booming, it’s unfortunate but I know folks with masters degrees temping right now to keep food on the table and their kids in school.
Temp agencies are a god send to alot of people.
I found temp agencies provide better benefits than many in house jobs. That is in the engineering field at least.
I temped after my first year of college, and for the most part had a really positive experience.
Job 1: Length 2weeks, but should have been longer. In the middle of almost nowhere, was this small office for a multi-million dollar international company that was in the … mushroom business! I answered phones mostly and typed paperwork, transcribed meetings from recording. It was kind of frustrating because it was such a small office and everyone was very tight knit. A guy that was around my age (net geek too), tried to be my friend, but I think he really wanted more since he was trying to impress me with all his Unix/IT skills. His attitude changed when I mentioned I had a boyfriend.
My supervisor went on vacation, and was involved in a serious car accident - but was back at work after a few days (canceled vacation). And on a rainy Friday at 445 PM, she calls me into her office and tells me I’m no longer needed and to call the temp agency. I’m like, ‘Excuse me, but my assignment was for another 4 weeks?’ I call the temp agency and it was news to them that my employer was canceling the assignment. My counselor said this was pretty atypical and that usually the employer discusses with the agency first about ending a contract. In the end, it didn’t really matter to me. I was getting paid, it was a sucky job and no one ever wanted to pick up their phone when I had a call for them.
About a week later I landed Job 2…
Job 2: Length 6 months, a few summers and a permanent position. Worked in HR after the last admin had a meltdown with the new computer system/software they were implementing. This company was in the middle of freaking COW country. My first commute into work was interrupted with COWS crossing the road. It was a chemical facility that manufactured chemicals primarily used in the pharmaceutical business. I thought it was cool I was working at a place that helped make Viagra :), however, it also scared me when I had to go through hours of safety videos/training even before I could begin work because of the potential for catastrophic failure at the site. I did get my own hardhat, safety goggles and labcoat.
I had never worked in HR before, but being a computer whiz I amazed the socks off most of the people there. I quickly learned the basic functions in HR admin, without all the BS of learning about benefits, workers comp, state/federal regulations etc. I was a data entry monkey with the dubious owner of processing timecards (by hand UGHHGHHGGHGH), and then handing out paychecks. I had my own office, with a key too! It was a lot of fun for 20yo. I really loved my job, and I really felt like an employee there. I gave my notice for when I went back to school in the fall because the commute and fulltime work/school schedule just wouldn’t work.
A few weeks into the semester I got a call they wanted to bring me back for some special projects, but I didn’t have the time and I just was in a car accident and no car. They came looking for me again that next summer to help in another department entering training data into their system. I got to work with the ISO/records management lady and I thought I was in data heaven. I went to some training seminars and I was sort of the guinea pig for how this information would get set up in the system. It was a lot of responsibility, and I finished way ahead of schedule, but they enjoyed me so much they quickly found more for me to do and back to HR I went.
The summer before my senior year of college and just after I graduated I worked there PT/FT as a direct employee of the company. I do remember having to do a bit of work as a ‘temp’ before the company could employee me as their own (certain number of contract hours before you’re free to work for the company you temp with). I worked in HR, and worked with people I had worked with before and it was a lot of fun. I got to design my job and made it more of an HRIS (information systems) position. I worked with business development on the company and corporate website, as well as internal systems. The only reason I left the company was I was getting married and moving away, but it by far the most cherished position I’ve had.
Upon getting married and moving, I didn’t have as much luck with temp agencies. I kept figuring it was because I was new to the area, and didn’t have much in the local sector, plus this area is so tiny/quiet.
Good luck!!!
Temping is great; the temp agencies, not so much. In my town, they think they still have the upper hand and can treat their temps like disposable employees. Things to remember as a temp:
-
If you don’t work, the temp agency doesn’t get paid. It is a symbiotic relationship; you are NOT lower on the totem pole than the agency, and don’t let them treat you that way.
-
Do be choosy. If you agree to an assignment you know you won’t like, you will regret it, you will probably quit early, and no one will be happy.
-
You can be fired from any assignment for any or no reason, with no notice. The flip side is also true, regardless of what the agency may try to tell you - you can quit any job at any time, for any or no reason (but if you choose your assignments wisely, you shouldn’t have to). Temping is the ultimate “at will” employment.
-
Your temp agency will care a lot more about your client’s happiness than yours. Don’t expect them to do too much for you if you and the client aren’t seeing eye to eye. Sometimes you just have to use the final option of walking away, if you’re getting abused or the job has completely changed from what it was supposed to be.
-
Bring a book and water to all assignments. The book is to entertain yourself at lunch and breaks (and possibly while working, if it’s dead and you are allowed to read at your desk). The water is so you can get some breaks (drink a lot, pee a lot). Temps often aren’t given breaks.
-
Be professional and put in a good day’s work, but don’t sweat the job too much - you’re there for a limited time, to do a limited job. There should be limited stress involved with that.
-
Be prepared for a couple of hours of testing and interviews when you go into the agency. Get your contact’s card, and a couple of timesheets while you’re there.
Best of luck to you, Tabby!
I don’t know what STAR questions are, but back when I was temping (early 90s, then turn of century) every agency I signed up with did a pretty ordinary interview as well as typing and computer-program skills tests.
Something to think about that may help you relax: many (by no means all) temp workers are brand new to work, and have yet to learn the most basic work lessons, such as how to be pleasant to people they don’t know, what office-appropriate clothing looks like, what level of personal hygiene to maintain, how important it is not to show up late, what to do if they’re not sure how to execute an assigned task, etc. By simply being professional in all these ways, you are likely to endear yourself to the agency fairly quickly.
If you possibly can, accept the first three or more jobs they offer you, and be as competent as you can be, even if the jobs are not your cup of tea. After the agency knows they can trust you, they’ll offer you better spots, and you’ll also have more leeway to say something like, “I’m really hoping something in accounting comes up soon!” when they offer you another envelope-stuffing job. But feel free to pass on jobs you cannot do (e.g., stacking 100-lb boxes in a warehouse, C++ programming) or would be miserable doing (chicken plucking, grease-trap cleaning, etc.)
Unless there’s a real glut of workers in your area, the agency will probably be able to give you a choice in the kind of commitments they ask you to make time-wise. That is, whether they put you in jobs they are certain are temporary, or in temp-to-perm spots; for a few days or for a few months.
Ditto what others have said about calling the agency – especially Monday morning. They should be able to tell you what time is best. Talking to someone in person is MUCH better than leaving a message for this.
Like **featherlou **mentioned, be prepared in case you have to sit there and do nothing. It’s better to read a book than to play Solitaire. It’s better to read something vaguely professional-looking than to read a Harlequin romance. Best of all, if the job allows (and many don’t), find something quiet, safe, and helpful to do at your seat, even if it’s sorting paperclips out of the box of rubber bands.
Luck!
This is very good advice.
And, if you are going to turn something down, just do it. Don’t wait till you really leave the agency high and dry. One Monday I walked in to a message from someone telling me they really couldn’t take the high paying administrative assistant job at the liquor distributor because they realized that they were against alcohol. Hello? Didn’t you know that Friday when I gave you the job? The client was mad at ME and I didn’t get a chance to refill that order.
Oh, yeah, btw, if you do poop out on a job, the client will blame the agency since they don’t know you and the agency will lose that business.
I’ve said it before: sign up for multiple agencies and play them off each other. It’s about you, not them. Get up early, be ready to go and call all your handlers. “What do you have for me? Okay, call you right back.” Take the best job offered to you from multiple agencies. You don’t want to be the go-to “yes” person they can fill their so-so jobs with.*
*After you’ve taken a couple sucky jobs and proven you’re a good worker, of course.
Oh, heavens, yes. You’d be amazed at how easy it is to get a reputation as a good temp. bufftabby, your post shows that you can spell and punctuate correctly and that you’re computer literate. That already gives you a leg up over lots of temps. If you can also show up on time and keep personal drama out of your work life, you’re golden.
As others have said, take the first couple of assignments offered to you, even if they’re not that great. Once you’ve proven yourself, you’ll start getting better assignments.
Others have recommended going with larger agencies, but I actually had the best luck with a smaller, locally-owned agency. They always kept me busy, and the jobs were usually with other locally-owned companies and somewhat more interesting than jobs I got with the competition. (I was at a travel agency for a while and a TV studio for about 3 months.) YMMV, depending on the situation in your area.
Good luck! Temping isn’t the most fulfilling thing ever, but it beats the pants off retail or food service, if you ask me.
I forgot to mention this - I was having a conversation with my agency rep and she basically dropped into the conversation that she considered me one of her best temps. After establishing that she wasn’t bullshitting or flattering me I realised why this was: I turned up for work every day, wasn’t late, always did the minimum number of hours (usually) more for the week thereby earning them more money, had zero complaints from any of my employers and quite a bit of good feedback and to top it off was doing this whilst usually being in good paying assignments.
So, in short, I was bankable (and when you’re a commodity, that’s what you want).
Oh, another one I forgot to mention - temping led me directly into the career I’m in now (government), which I probably would never have considered otherwise. So I recommend it a lot.
I had very few short-term positions (and I hated the ones I had). Many companies are using temps on a long-term basis because they don’t have to pay benefits to them. Those are the jobs I enjoyed. People start treating you like part of the team (because you ARE part of their team after a while). These are the temp jobs that open doors to permanent positions.