Temporary Workers—No Longer Growing
Employment Policy Foundation
www.epf.org/research/newsletters/2000/et02feb2000.asp
(February 2, 2000)
Abstract:
The authors refute claims that traditional jobs are being replaced by temporary
jobs that lack security and benefits. They discuss the number of nontraditional
workers, their characteristics, the advantages of contingent work arrangements,
the reasons why employers use contingent workers, and the benefits contingent
work offers to the larger economy.
Findings:
Trends in temporary employment remained relatively unchanged in the four years
prior to 2000. The author finds that the majority of nontraditional workers labor
under such arrangements as a matter of choice, not economic necessity. Only
15.3% of contingent workers said that temporary work was the only work that
they could find. 52.3% of contingent workers cited personal reasons for taking up
contingent work. Many undertake nontraditional employment in order to acquire
much-needed experience to secure traditional jobs. A survey for the National
Association of Temporary and Staffing Services revealed that 72 percent of
former temporary employees found permanent jobs while on assignment.
Others find that the flexibility of temporary work allows them to balance school
and family responsibilities with an opportunity to earn income. According to a
recent Conference Board survey, employers have various reasons for employing a
contingent workforce, including labor flexibility to meet demand fluctuations
(81%), temporarily acquiring specific employee skills (48%), and headcount
control in times of downsizing (48%). Only 12% stated that they used contingent
workers to control benefit costs. Rather than threatening the traditional job
market, nontraditional arrangements can strengthen the efficiency of the overall
labor market.
Methodology:
Data is presented from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey
supplements on contingent and alternative employment arrangements