The staffing companies or firms as of now are on the high growth trajectory as they were during 2013. The staffing firms are enjoying the higher demand for temporary labor and there is a demand for record number of temporary jobs that is expected to continue for the next successive years and beyond. The actual high growth trends in staffing industry started back in 2000’s with companies after getting weary of fighting Great Recession were searching ways for balancing increasing product demand with uncertainty about the workforce or prospective employees. Even though, recession is quite over, but the demand for temporary labor still exists.
Even after the Great Recession, the employers are strategic with their workforce planning. Employers are able to find a right mix of contingent, permanent, and part/full time employees to drive their businesses forward with effectiveness in the process of increasing their productivity to full extent. Majority of organizations is looking for a more flexible workforce that helps them in easing payroll costs if demand decreases. Companies are in need of temporary labor to meet their day-to-day goals, as they do not want to build pressure on their full time staff that may result in staff burnouts.
Staff augmentation is the mantra that is being implemented by many organizations with the improvement in the economy. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, temporary jobs rose by 8,500 in July-2014 to almost 2.9 million. In the same month, the temporary labor penetration rate reached a record high of 2.07%. Staffing experts do believe that staffing industry is the leading indicator for economic growth and as such; a high penetration rate would forecast a drop in the overall unemployment rate. The American Staffing Association further opines that the temporary help employment is particularly a strong coincident economic indicator when the economy is emerging from recession.
The temporary to hire staff in addition to resulting in faster hiring process also affords organizations an extra degree of protection from risky or unproductive employees and from economic upheavals. There is also an emerging trend of baby boomers turning to temporary staffing agencies for part-time work after starting their retirement. These trends do indicate that the U.S economy is back on its wheels and there is exists more opportunities for staffing firms to play their role in strengthening the recruitment strategy of their clients or customers.