Temp is short for temporary worker, which is a worker that is hired only for a short time. A person may become a temp for a few reasons. One is that they like the flexible schedule. Another might be that they want to get their foot in the door at a particular company. Another may be that they want to find a company that fits them. Becoming a temp is a great way to do all of these things.
A company might hire a temp for a variety of reasons as well. They may just need short term help with a one-time project or they may want to take an employee on for a trail basis.
Becoming a temp is relatively easy. It basically involves finding yourself a temp agency. But you need to find yourself the right type of temp agency. Many temp agencies specialize in particular areas, such as laborer, office or professional. They may even specialize more than that, perhaps only servicing medical office workers or manufacturing professionals. When you look for a temp agency, look for one that is best for you.
Make a list of two or three temp agencies that you might be interested in. Inquire about their hiring policies, what they expect from you as a temp and what kind of benefits you might expect. Many temp agencies treat their temps as regular employees who receive health insurance, 401K and other benefits.
Once you have been hired by a temp agency, you will be assigned a job. When you are assigned a job be sure to find out four things, where the job is located, what time you are expected to be there, what you will be doing and how long the job will last.
Now that you have a temporary job, keep some things in mind. Dress for the job. Dress for this job the same as you would if it was a regular full-time employment job.
Be on time. Nothing will reflect on you worse than being late.
Be a good worker. Sometimes, temps are hired to do undesirable or boring jobs. You still should still do your best. Remember, it’s only temporary.
Respect others and yourself. You need to respect your temporary boss and employer. On the same note, you need to make sure that you respect yourself as well. Occasionally, a temporary employer may think that the temp that they have hired is slave labor with no working rights. This is untrue. If you feel you are being treated badly or if you are being asked to do tasks that are widely out of the range that you were hired to do (say, you were hired as a secretarial temp and they want you to clean bathrooms) ask your supervisor at the temp agency for a new assignment. Do this sparingly though. Only if you really feel that you are being treated unfairly. I’ll explain why in a moment.
So why should you do all this? I mean, after all, it is just a temp job. The first reason is because you may want to become an employee at the company you are assigned to. Many companies use temporary services to locate good employees. So even if the job that you are currently working on is only temporary there may a permanent job within the company that you could apply for.
The second reason is that the better of a temp you are, the better the assignments given to you are. If your supervisor at the temp agency knows that you are a hard working, reliable temp, he or she will assign you to the plum jobs. This is why you should not request assignment changes too often. It will result in being labeled unreliable.
Temping can be a great way to add a little variety to your career or to land that perfect job. Be a good temp, get a good job, temporary or otherwise.