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Temporary job as an opportunity?

Do you prefer a permanent position to a temporary one? Then you might be missing out on an exciting opportunity in the job market. Find out why here.
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Sina Fehr

03.10.2022

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5 min reading time

Temporary job - "No thanks!"

While looking for a suitable job, employees often come across the possibility of being employed on a temporary basis through a recruitment agency. However, many do not know exactly what temporary work means in detail. Particularly job seekers who have previously worked exclusively in permanent positions are sometimes insufficiently informed about the work model of temporary employment. Prejudices and a lack of knowledge can lead to job seekers being critical of temporary work even today. For example, as branch manager of Universal-Job AG in Rapperswil I sometimes hear sentences such as: >I am open to a permanent position, but a temporary job is out of the question for me.

Where does this mistrust of temporary work come from? This paper aims to explain the model of temporary employment and to dispel outdated prejudices. To this end, it looks at the development of temporary work over the past few years and outlines its advantages and disadvantages. Finally, the article shows the opportunities that arise from temporary employment and should thus help job seekers to put aside their uneasy feelings about temporary work once and for all in the future.

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Temporary work in the past and today

In the case of temporary employment, the employee is employed by a recruitment agency and subsequently has temporary assignments, i.e. changing and time-limited assignments with different employers. As mentioned above, the model of temporary employment is sometimes still pigeonholed in a negative way. This is probably due to the fact that the labour law standards for temporary positions were not always implemented to the same extent in the past. For example, some recruitment agencies paid lower wages to employees in order to keep their own earnings high. At the latest since the introduction of the Collective Labour Agreement on Staff Leasing (GAV Personalverleih) in 2012, such an approach is no longer possible.

With the CBA Staff Leasing, labour law conditions were negotiated for all Swiss staffing service providers. In the process, minimum wages were introduced for temporary employees and regulations concerning overtime supplements, occupational pension schemes, daily sickness benefits, etc. were declared generally binding. As a result, temporary employees are now largely on an equal footing with permanent employees, if not better off. As mentioned, a minimum wage applies to temporary employees and overtime bonuses are mandatory, which is not the case for permanent employees. In addition, temporary workers enjoy strong protection in that they are subject to labour and social security law as employees.

Temporary job - advantages and disadvantages

Jobseekers regularly cite the shortness of the work assignments as an argument against temporary employment. In this context, concerns are expressed that after the temporary assignment they will be back at the beginning of the cumbersome application process and will have to start all over again. In my view, these objections appear to be unfounded due to the following considerations:

Temporary work offers the opportunity to work alternately in different companies. By looking behind the scenes, the employee gains work experience and deepens his knowledge in different areas. Accordingly, temporary employment can also be used to bridge the gap until a permanent position is taken up. When the temporary assignment begins, the employee has the opportunity to gain a foothold in this or another company. It often happens that satisfied employers offer the employee a permanent position at the end of the temporary employment relationship. In addition, temporary work gives the employee flexibility in his or her job and the scope to take on new challenges.

Of course, these conditions require that the temporary worker is willing to get to know new companies and gain work experience in different areas. During the process, however, the employee is not left alone by the personnel service provider; universaljob supports the employee in his search for a suitable position and is at his side before, during and after the entire application process.

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What is the Try & Hire model?

In contrast to temporary employment, which ends automatically at the end of the fixed period of employment, many client companies today work with the so-called "Try & Hire" model. This is designed so that after a three-month test phase, a permanent position is created between the employee and the company.

Client companies often use the try & hire model in order to save time in the search for suitable workers on the one hand and on the other hand to be able to prepare the takeover for permanent employment after the three-month period. It is therefore much easier for the client company to employ workers during the first three months via a recruitment agency.

With regard to the try & hire model, some employees express the concern that taking on a temporary position instead of a permanent one entails certain risks. This consideration is understandable, but is not thought through to the end; even with permanent employment, there is normally a three-month probationary period during which notice of termination can be given within a week. Accordingly, the three-month period of the try & hire model does not lead to any disadvantage compared to permanent employment. In addition, the temporary employee has the advantage that many companies do not advertise their try & hire positions publicly, but instead place them directly with the personnel service provider.

Temporary jobs trendy for highly qualified workers

A study by swissstaffing from 2020 shows that today more and more highly qualified employees are also opting for a temporary employment relationship. The main motivations for highly qualified workers to work temporarily were flexibility, labour market integration and social security.

However, there is a trend not only among employees, but also among companies towards more temporary employment relationships. Swiss companies have recently been hiring more temporary workers to fill the gaps created by the shortage of skilled workers and to bring specialised expertise into the company. In addition, from a company perspective, there are the following further reasons that speak for a strong growth potential of temporary employment relationships:

  • There are more and more fixed-term projects that can be covered on a temporary basis;
  • the economy is increasingly dynamic, spontaneous large orders are not uncommon;
  • easy bridging in case of absence due to illness or accident;
  • quickly available additional support.

Conclusion: Give temporary positions a chance

There are thus numerous reasons in favour of a temporary job. On the one hand, the CBA Staff Leasing, which is applicable to temporary employment, guarantees employee-friendly conditions, for example by setting minimum wages and overtime supplements, thus ensuring a high level of social security. On the other hand, a temporary job offers, among other things, simplified labour market integration, allows more flexibility in the job and ensures a simplified transition to permanent employment.

Ultimately, however, the decision to take a temporary job is of course up to the individual employee. Personally, I would like to give the readers of this article the following advice: Be open to new things, stay flexible and make the most of your opportunities - starting out in a temporary job offers new opportunities.

about the author

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Sina Fehr

Marketing & Communication

Sina is Marketing Manager at universaljob and blogs here about topics relating to careers, HR processes, digitalisation and recruitment. Do you follow us on LinkedIn, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram? There you can find out more about universaljob as an employer or get tips for your application.