8 ways to find and keep a temporary job |
|
|
|
2. Tweak your resume. Because temporary jobs tend to be goal-oriented and time-specific, staffing agencies and their clients aren't necessarily interested in reading a resume with a blow-by-blow chronology of your career. Rather, they want to know of specific skill sets, the details on projects you've run or other major accomplishments.
"Show us any cost-saving measures you've been involved in, or whether you successfully set up a new department or helped develop a new product," says James Mack, business unit leader of Kelly Financial Resources at Troy, Mich.-based Kelly Services Inc.
3. Be honest about salary expectations. Temporary job wages range dramatically based on market factors, geography, job seekers' experience and other factors.
Whatever you do, don't imply that you'll take anything and then snub an assignment based on the pay. Decide upfront what you can survive on and tell the temp recruiter how much it is. Then the agency can assign jobs to you that fit your requirements.
"If you really want to turn off a recruiter, accept a job and then call us two days later to say, 'I really can't live on this,'" says Sloan.
Typically, temporary agencies charge the client company directly at a higher hourly rate than you'll be paid, but you'll still earn a competitive rate. "Staffing firms have to pay to attract talent (and) the client knows that," Berchem says.
Your agency will bill the client and pay you -- usually weekly. Normally, it also handles withholding for income taxes, Social Security and Medicare. They would also manage deductions for 401(k) savings, health insurance and other fringe benefits, if those are available.
The markup that agencies charge employers on top of your pay rate, which covers their administrative services, overhead and profits, varies according to their clients' contracts. But generally, they range from 35 percent to 55 percent, says Osborne. After overhead costs are paid, the industry's average profit margin is 4 percent to 5 percent, he says.
Workers with in-demand credentials may be able to bypass agencies and deal directly with employers, Osborne says, particularly in the information-technology arena. "If you are highly skilled and already have the connections, great," he says. "But if you don't, it's easier to have someone else do all that for you."
4. Prepare to counter the "overqualified" conundrum. Given the nation's 8.9 percent unemployment rate, many people might be willing to check their egos at the door, as having a job takes on greater importance. An engineer might be willing to do warehouse work, or a marketing pro might offer to answer phones and perform data entry. Agencies understand that, but they are wary of placing seasoned candidates in lower-level positions for fear they'll quit without completing the assignment.
Allay their fears by making it clear that you're open to new job experiences and learning opportunities, as a way of making yourself more marketable. You, and the agency on your behalf, also can make the case that your know-how will streamline a temporary job.
"Candidates can pitch themselves from a cost-effectiveness standpoint," Mack says. "If they can use their experience to get a project done faster, the client wins."
5. Once you're on the job, don't coast. Temporary jobs are more than a paycheck. They're a foot in the door to a prospective full-time employer, a networking opportunity and a chance to learn new skills in a new business sector.
Temping also gives you the chance to get paid for trying out entirely new fields, such as substitute teaching or call-center work, with an eye toward changing careers entirely.
|
