The benefits of temporary employment services for project-based and short-term workloads
|Published
Construction cranes are seen behind a dockyard worker walking along a quay at the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town. Image, EPA, NIC BOTHMA.
By Tania Govender
While a permanent workforce remains the mainstay for businesses despite the challenges of the last few years, there are many instances where workloads are project based.
When it comes to seasonal work, peak periods, strikes or industrial action, and even planned shutdowns, organisations need to be able to scale their workforce rapidly – and temporarily – to cater to increased demand. The services of a specialised and reputable Temporary Employment Services (TES) partner can prove invaluable.
Gearing up at short notice
Project-based work such as construction, and short-term workloads like seasonal employment, peak retail season and scheduled plant shutdowns, require high volumes of additional staff at short notice, but only for a specific period, based on operational demand.
When industrial action occurs, businesses may need to bring on additional workers at short notice. This may also require staff with specialised skills to be available on demand, temporarily.
Simplifying the process
There are many instances where organisations must scale their workforce quickly, but on a temporary basis, and getting this recruitment process wrong can be detrimental. A poor calibre of staff that is lacking in experience, skill, or knowledge to effectively carry out the work required can result in errors, damages, and losses, often delaying the completion of the project. This in turn can result in penalties being applied, causing financial losses.
It is imperative to employ people with the right experience in related fields of work, and often additional recruitment processes are required, such as medicals, depending on the job function, permits which are dependent on the location of work, and qualifications or certifications based on the skills required. Managing all of this for large volumes of workers can be administratively intense and time consuming. This is where a TES partner can be a game-changer.
TES takes on the challenge
There are many additional challenges that organisations may face. Candidates that have been used before may not be available, which means a more intensive recruitment process must be undertaken.
The recruitment process involves the screening of hundreds or thousands of applicants, verifying credentials, confirming previous work experience, and ensuring the candidates meet the set criteria for the job, which can be a mammoth undertaking.
It is also important to maintain a healthy pool of candidates that meet the recruitment criteria and job specifications to ensure quick turnaround with replacement.
Other factors include managing medicals and the coordination of this, managing the supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) required for specific jobs, and ensuring employment contracts or fixed-term contracts are completed accurately.
In addition, managing the human resources and industrial relations for the large volumes of staff required for the short period can end up monopolising internal resources, leaving the functions generally taken care of outside of the seasonal period being neglected.
It can also be difficult to establish a healthy working relationship with the communities surrounding the job site from where staff must be recruited. This is a crucial step, however forming and maintaining relationships with community leaders is very time consuming and requires ongoing attention.
TES providers specialise in handling this in addition to all other areas of the staffing process, which minimises friction and helps ensure that short-term projects are supported and successful.
The right TES partner will take on all these roles and functions for the temporary workforce to reduce the administrative challenges and effort involved.
They will also handle accommodation and transport, provide support services once supply begins, ensure staff meet health and safety requirements, manage supply to ensure seamless delivery, perform criminal checks before recruitment, and carry the payroll costs, paying out staff on a weekly basis to afford the client the time to pay on 30-day payment terms.
This can prove invaluable when it comes to navigating the challenges of scaling a workforce for project-based or short-term workloads.
Tania Govender is the sales director at Worldwide Staffing.
BUSINESS REPORT