Anyone here work for a "temp" agency?

[C.Ann]

I'm considering going that route.. My DH now has to be seen by 3 more specialists and with the VA you don't get your "choice" of days or hours.. I'm thinking it might be easier to work around these appts. if I worked for a temp agency..

I did it once - many, many years ago - but I'm sure a lot has changed since then.. Is the pay decent? Do they have very short term - as well as long term positions available?

Can anyone reccomend a nationwide chain that they have been happy with?

Thanks!

 

[Barb D]

I've never been a temp, but we get them occasionally when our receptionist is out. (In fact, she started out working for the same temp agency, but switched to working full time for our company.) We tend to get the same two ladies frequently, so I've gotten to know them a bit. They both seem really happy with it. I'm not sure what company they work for, but I'll ask our receptionist tomorrow.

 

[cynsaun]

I worked as a temporary paralegal for a large telecommunications companies a few years ago. I was brought on full time after 6 months.

You can work around your schedule with temp agencies, and you actually get paid more because the company doesn't pay benefits (as long as you don't need those!) They do offer super-short assignments as well.

Good Luck!

 

[tar heel]

I also worked at a place where the receptionist was originally a temp. She temped for a few months, then got hired on for that job. When she started temping, she had not worked for about 15 years.

My college-age son just finished a lovely 10 days of working at Lowe's Motor Speedway in luxury suites food service through a temp agency. His crew had 50 people and most days they worked more than eight hours. My son worked every day, but there were some people who did not. The agency may be able to find him some more work this summer, but for now he's "retired."

 

[Mish19]

I temped for a few years and it was great when I had steady work. My last (YAY!!) assignment led me to an interview to be hired for a different department.
I personally was getting tired of it but I was temping for years at that point. I used Adecco Employment Services and they were decent.

Good luck!

 

[Snowysmom]

I have temped and worked around my schedule. If the kids had the day off from school, I just let them know ahead of time and I was off too. If one of the kids were sick, I called in sick. It was very flexible for me. One company kept me on for the school year and I took off the kids' vacations and holidays. They asked me to come back after I took off the summer so they are flexible. I have also worked long term and short term. I currently have a permanent part time job but temping worked out well. Good luck.

 

[LindaG4458]

What kind of work do you want to do?

I temped for Accountemps from 11/95 to 3/98. During that time I had assignments that ran a week, and some that ran as long as 10 months. I was offered three full-time jobs from temping and accepted the last one. The good part is flexibility - you can specify that you want short assignments only, how far you are willing to travel, and other variables. The more assignments you take and the more well-known you become to the agency the more picky you can become.

The best part, I thought, was the ability to see the inner workings of companies before becoming an actual employee. It would have been easy to be hired into the first two jobs offered to me. If I hadn't already seen the politics it would have been a rude awakening and I would not have been happy. The third job was a perfect fit and I stayed until DH retired and I had to move.

 

[katerkat]

It depends on the area. I worked as a temp one summer in college, and got work every week I wanted it. And they had no problem letting me off for my family's vaca - I just told them not to assign me this week.

However, here in the middle of nowhere, I'm signed up with a temp agency and got one whole job. And I've worked at this job a total of three days. Useless!

 

[Grog]

My SO worked for a temp agency for a couple of years and was rarely without a job. She finally was offered a full time positon with a company that had good benefits, so she took it.

 

[sk8belle]

I've worked with Randstad before. They are a worldwide agency, so you might find an office by you, C.Ann. The pay was based on your level of office skills. They did offer some health benefits as well - always an important feature.

The deal was, temps would be given an assignment, usually long-term (a week or more), and then had to call in to the Randstad office every Fri. to check what the next assignment might be. If the office couldn't find you an assignment right away, they would ask you to come in to their office and wait in case a company called with a last minute request. If you waited there until 12 noon, but didn't get an assignment, you'd get sent home, but still get paid for the day.

Hope this helps! Good luck with your search.

sk8belle

 

[Jungle Skipper]

My sister is a temp...she likes it for the most part....She likes the pay...its better than what she was making before...nothing spectacular, but she's working for a manufacturer now.

Best wishs in your search....Pixie Dust!

Jungle Josh

 

[FroggyinArk]

ghmm can see a few red flags possible here,,, dw worked temp one time,, ended up ina manufactoring position,, the company payed 15 hourly,, but dw got min wage through temp agency watch out for the small "local" ones, they tend to have more trouble. also will they be willing to let you drop on a spur of moment timing for drs visits ? what about those weeks when you have 1 day out of five available, or the unforseen trip to drs that turns into hospital stay?

just a few random thoughts

 

[Pin Wizard]

Originally posted by sk8belle
I've worked with Randstad before. They are a worldwide agency, so you might find an office by you, C.Ann. The pay was based on your level of office skills. They did offer some health benefits as well - always an important feature.

The deal was, temps would be given an assignment, usually long-term (a week or more), and then had to call in to the Randstad office every Fri. to check what the next assignment might be. If the office couldn't find you an assignment right away, they would ask you to come in to their office and wait in case a company called with a last minute request. If you waited there until 12 noon, but didn't get an assignment, you'd get sent home, but still get paid for the day.

Hope this helps! Good luck with your search.

sk8belle

Wow! I will be calling them tomorrow! I know there's one near my home...had seen the sign a lot but never knew they were a temp agency. I definitely need the health insurance! Single mom and cobra is loooooooooooooong gone...OUCH on private insurance!

 

[Pin Wizard]

Oh! I've also worked for temp agencies. And I can think of 4 positions over the years that turned into permanent jobs. And one was working for the temp agency itself! Two of the positions I reeeeeeeeeeeeeeally liked. I would have kept the first one if I stayed in NJ and didn't move to FL. The other was in FL, but the company "downsized" 9 months after they hired me. Since I was the last hired, I was the first to go.

 

[C.Ann]

I would really, really like to get back into the field of medical records - and barring that, any kind of clerical work in the medical field, fill-in receptionist in a doctor's office, etc..

I don't think there will be any problems with availability of jobs (surrounded by three fairly large cities all within easy driving distance) and I will make it known from the outset that I am only interested in very short-term positions..

Health insurance is not a problem - as long as I am only working part-time I can keep the insurance I have..

I will NOT accept jobs in manufacturing, telephone sales, etc.; and if there is a problem with the agency in terms of my preferences then I will simply move on to the next one..

Thanks for all of the great replies!