Our clients often ask us, “what are the advantages of a contract workforce?” It’s easy to understand this question given potential economic and labor market volatility, along with the short & long-term needs and expectations of candidates. Employers are looking for ways to adjust to these challenges quickly, not lose any progress toward their growth goals, and satisfy increasing production demands. A contract workforce may be the answer! The following are the top 4 benefits of hiring a contract employee or workforce.
Flexibility: One of the most appealing benefits of contract workers is the flexibility it offers to employers, especially for project work or seasonal jobs. Often times it’s counterproductive for employers to commit a full-time employee to a limited-time project or job. Bringing on a contract employee can help improve efficiency and production when work levels increase or a project needs completion. In addition, having the flexibility of an agreed-upon contract ensures the employer will not have to retain excess staff when the work level resumes to usual or lower levels. This ability to forecast and control costs lead us to the next benefit.
Reduce long-term labor costs: With contract workers, employers can reduce the costs associated with hiring permanent staff. Contract employees offer the expertise you need at a reduced overall cost because some recruiting firms provide comprehensive benefits such as Health Insurance, PTO, a 401k, etc. Click to learn how Sterling uniquely supports their contract workers. Offering benefits creates an unprecedented level of support, built on focus and retention, given that benefits and professional development programs promote retention and allow employees to build careers!
Experience (specialized skill set): Looking for someone to jump right in and start immediately? Contract employees often have many years of experience and a wide range of backgrounds. As a result, employers can hire for specific or niche skill sets that their permanent workforce may not have. Contract employees also have clear expectations for a particular goal or purpose when hired – they are hyper-focused on the task at hand, delivering high-quality work. Additionally, they bring a fresh perspective and immediately impact a job or project.
Shorter hiring and onboarding processes: Contract positions help companies move quickly to fill a need or complete a project. Permanent positions can take weeks or months to fill. Finding the right candidate, gaining approval, negotiating the offer, completing required prescreening, etc. can take a long time – meanwhile, the project or job is in limbo. If an employer chooses to leverage a recruiting agency, HR can focus on filling full-time positions taking the pressure off to satisfy this quick-turnaround need.
Bonus benefit: contract-to-hire: Leveraging a contract-to-hire strategy allows companies to explore the hard and soft skills of the candidate. Plus, both employee and employer have a chance to determine “fit” before making a long-term commitment.
Visit our next blog in this series.
Do you have additional questions about contract workers or need help filling a contract role? If so, we are here to help and look forward to partnering with you.
