TRENDS
Playing the Staffing Accordion
Companies are turning to temporary workers to stabilize the workforce.
BY ERIKA COHEN
P
atrick
McKenna
doesn't hold down a
fiill-time job, and his
financial fi,iturc has
never looked brighter. McKenna, an engineering mechanical designer, has carved a full-time
career out of working temporarily
for businesses.
McKenna of Durham, who has
been a contract temporary worker
for the last five years, has never
been unemployed and says he always has more work than he can
do. He works both through staffing
agencies and his own company, 3D
Specialist, to find jobs.
Five years ago, he decided his
employer at the time didn't seem
to have any loyalty towards its employees and he didn't want to be
tied to just one employer. So he
took the plunge as an independent
contractor. "The money is good,
my wife has the benefits covered
and ever since I have been inundated with phone calls," McKenna says. "I have never been out
of work for more than one week.
I'm getting phone calls just about
every day."
PdUick Me
On top of all that, he says the
money is much better than full-time gigs as
he commands around $40 an hour for most
jobs. He generally works at a company for
about nine months and makes about a third
more than he wouid as afijU-timeemployee.
For many companies, temporary workers
like McKenna are becoming a critical component of their staffing plans. That includes
Kollsman Inc. in Merrimack, an avionics,
military and medical technology manufacturer with 580 employees. For the past four
years, Kollsman has filled approximately 10
percent of its positions with temporaiy workers, says Jack MeStravock, vice president of
human resources,
MeStravock uses temporary workers as
a way to stabilize his workforce and deal
with short bursts of activity without layoffs once those bursts subside. Kollsman
uses most of its 50 to 58 temporary employees in its subsidiary, KMC Systems
Inc., which produces medical devices.
14
MARCH
2007
www,butinOHNHmagai(n..com
akes his living as a temporary worker for companies, p
MeStravock says temporary workers are
as skilled as his employees and he sees no
disadvantages.
Thermo Fisher Scientific in Newington
uses temporary workers for lower-level manufacturing positions, generally hiring people
on a temporary-to-permanent basis. That allows the company to fluctuate its head count
when necessaiy without eliminating any
positions. During the past year, temporaryworkers made up about 5 percent of its workforce, says Karen Brieger, the senior human
resources generalist.
Companies like Kollsman and Thermo
Fisher Scientific are keeping staffing firms
hopping, with NH firms placing thousands
of temporary workers annually, according to
those in the field,
"Instead of committing to that person, an
employer says let's date for a while, let's see if
you like it here and if 1 like you and not make
that full 100 percent invesmient,"saysTraeey
Madden, president of Mclntosh Staffing Resources. LLC in Dover.
Madden, whose firm places oOice and
professional workers, says temporary workers are valued in both strong and uncertain
economic times. In cyclical markets, temporary workers allow employers to fill or eliminate positions without layoffs, she says, Wilh
the economy gaining strength, it's an employee's market and people are jumping between
jobs. That, says Madden, means "somewhere
along the way we will need some bodies to
Band-Aid the situation."
During the past four years, Mclntosh
Staffing Resources experienced brisk business in temporary placements, which accounted for 75 percent of its business.
That's starting to shift slightly as there was
a higher demand for pcnnanent placement
workers in 2006, and temporary placements have dipped to 70 percent of the
firm's business.
TRENDS
Following the Market
Immediate Satisfaction
Starting wilh the tiol-com bust in 2001
and 2002. David Ciuiierre/. president of TYMARK Ass^Kiates, LLC in Bedford, saw an
uptiek in the demand for temporary placements. At its peak right after the dot-com
bust, temporary placements accounted for 50
percent ofTYMARK's business. It has since
dropped lo a steady pace of 20 percent,
TYMARK places clients throughout New
Hngland in numerous fields, including manufacturing, distribution, engineering, and finance, Gutierrez says.
Unemployment trends in NH reflect the
cycles experienced by Madden and Gutierrez, The economic boom of the late 1990s
plummeted into a recession in 2001, The
state unemployment rate rose from under 3
percent in ,ianuary 2000 to more than 4,5 percent by the middle of 2002, according to NH
Department of Employment Security data.
That rale has been steadily dropping since
then, and unemployment has remained at 3.5
percent between November 2005 and November 2006. the last month for which data
was available,
"It was like a jobless recovery in that the
economy stabilized but the job count didn't
go up and llien it was very. very, slow in coming back." says Anita Josten. an analyst with
empioyment security, of the slow decline in
the unemployment rate. She says businesses
are now cautious about investing in people
until they arc more certain about the economic outlook.
Liulicrrc/ describes the lure oftemporary
workers in terms of two economic powerhouses. Wal-Mart and McDonald's, The WalMart mentality ts "I want it. I want it in abundance and I want it cheaply," says Gutierrez.
The McDonald's mentality is you pull up to
the window and "minutes later you pull away
with every meal you want, exactly how you
want it,"
Gutierrez says tcmporar>' employees can
fill both needs. In the first ease, temporary
employees do not require employers to pay
ancillary costs, such as health care, vacation
time and other benefits. He also points out
they don't carry the same liability issues as
full-time employees. Li ihe second case, temporary employees arrive trained and ready to
lie productive,
"In this day and age, the reality for every
business owner is you need flexibility and
you need to make as much income as you can
with as much profit margin and minimum liability," he says.
The needs of Wentworth Douglass Hospital in Dover fall more along the McDonald's
line of thinking. The hospital uses temporal^
workers for short- atid longer-tenii clerical
jobs when regular etnployees are not available. The hospital currently hires temporary
employees to fill only two of its 1.600 positions on a regular basis.
In late January. Wentworlh Douglass
needed a fast typist for a seven- to 10-day
job and additional staffing for two to three
months in a physician"s office switching fi-om
paper to electronic records.
Human Resources Manager Kim .lacques
called Madden and the two employees arrived ready to work two days later, Jaeques
says temporary workers usually fill in for a
leave of absence, a seasonal project or a gap
between job vacancies. And since Madden is
also a consumer at the hospital, "she's familiar with the community and is able to refer the
right candidate Ibr the iob." .lacques says.
There is no law in NH litniting the length
of time employees can be hired on a temporary basis. Placements range from as little as a
few days to years. McKenna says his average
stint at one company is about nine months,
during which he often does other jobs on the
side on nighis and weekends. Kollsman uses
temporary workers for periods averaging 90
to 120 days.
Whatever the length of service, companies
that focus on temporary slaffing fimis say business continues to be strong, Michael Lcccese,
viee president of Tecimlcal Needs in Salem.
says temporary staffing services ct>nimand
competitive fees foi" two basic reasons: They
actually save companies money and time.
Since placement companies do the
screening, records checking, and interviewing, companies get skilled candidates without having to spend the time to find them,
says Leceese. "It's the speed of getting
somebody in and it's the cost," he says, "It's
a lot more eflective if they need someone for
a short time." •
Shaping Success
FOR NEW HAMPSHIRE EMPLOYERS
We work with New Hampshire employers in all aspects of the employeremployee relationship to develop practical employment policies and procedures
that comply with the law and minimize die risk ot employment disputes.
Michael Caliahan. Esq. Anne Scheer, Esq.
David Garfunkel, Esq.
Maria Mattiiews, Esq,
David Phiilips. Esq,
Dana Scott
Laurei VanBuskirh. Esq.
Call any member of our Employment and Labor Relations team
to discuss your specific employ?nent related issues at 603-228-J181.
elalLighcr. Caliahan & Gartrell, PC
A multidisciplinary law firm
Concord, NH | Augusta, ME 800-528-1181
LEARN
MORE AT
gcglaw.com
BUSINESS N H M A G A Z I N E
M A R C H
2007
1 5
Purchase answer to see full
attachment