Using temporary workers has proved beneficial for many companies that have seasonal changes in demand. But in addition to covering labor needs during a busy season, they can also be used to cover vacation, medical or other absences for regular employees, to meet a last minute deadline or to try out potential workers before hiring them full-time.
There are several types of temp workers – those that are hired directly, those provided through a temporary staffing agency and independent contractors. The first two are most likely the types that would be used on the production floor of a pallet company. Each type brings a company different benefits and responsibilities.
Direct Hires
Temp workers hired directly are your employees and must be treated much the same as regular employees as most labor laws apply to them, including workplace safety, harassment, discrimination, minimum wage, and overtime. They must also be given certain benefits. The exact benefits vary between states so be sure to check with your state’s labor department. They usually include unemployment benefits, Social Security and Medicare withholding taxes and workers’ compensation insurance.
Temporary workers hired directly by you have the dual benefit and drawback of having to be recruited and interviewed by you. Since you are doing the interviewing, you can better ensure that they have the skills and experience you are looking for and will fit well with your team. But if you need someone quickly, you may not have the time to go through the hiring process.
Temp Agency Workers
Utilizing a temporary staffing agency is a great option if you don’t have the time, staff or desire to deal with searching for candidates or the paperwork that comes with additional employees. Workers from a temp agency are employees of the temp agency that are merely hired out to your company. The agency handles the recruiting, payroll, taxes, insurance, benefits and other employer paperwork for their employees. Although it’s the responsibility of the temp agency to have liability and workers’ compensation coverage for their employees, it’s a good idea to make sure that the coverage it has is sufficient to protect your company from a temporary worker’s claim.
However, as a host employer, you still have some responsibilities to these workers, especially that of providing a safe work environment. When it comes to training and safety and health protections, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires host employers to treat temporary workers like any other worker and considers temp agencies and host employers to be jointly responsible for maintaining a safe work environment for temporary workers. This includes ensuring safety training, hazard communication and recordkeeping requirements. In fact, temp agency workers are one of the biggest areas OSHA watches for safety violations as they often do not get the proper safety training.
Independent Contractors
If you are looking for someone with a particular skill set or training, an independent contractor may be useful. An independent contractor is basically a self-employed person who will work temporarily or part-time for a company. Though they probably would not be hired to work production, independent contractors that could be useful to a pallet company include maintenance workers, business consultants, bookkeepers and other office help.
For tax and other legal purposes you are not allowed to dictate an independent contractor’s work schedule. And, since you are hiring their skills not employing them, you are not responsible for providing benefits, withholding tax/Medicare/Social Security, or paying unemployment taxes. The main responsibility you have with an independent contractor is reporting payment of $600 or more on an IRS 1099 Form.
