What are the Hottest Contract Staffing Industries?

By DEBBIE FLEDDERJOHANN, President of Top Echelon Contracting

Contract staffing has been one of the few bright spots in the slow and painful economic recovery. Last year was a particularly successful as contract staffing experienced a 10% year-over-year increase with an all-time high of 2,816,600 jobs.  Recruiters, especially those looking to get into contract staffing, may wonder where all this growth is taking place.

Well, according to Top Echelon Contracting’s 2013 contract placement statistics, the hottest industries for contract staffing are as follows:

Behind the numbers are some interesting developments. For instance, in Healthcare we are not just seeing traditional healthcare placements (therapists, pharmacists, nurses, etc.). We are also noticing “crossovers” into Engineering and Information Technology with placements in the Biomedical and Health IT fields.

It’s no surprise that Manufacturing/Engineering is in the top three. As manufacturers begin to bring work back on-shore, there is a huge demand for highly skilled workers in this sector. Likewise, Information Technology is also clamoring for talent as technology continues to evolve at warp speed. The nature of the work in both sectors makes contracting a very attractive option for both candidates and clients. These industries are driving a trend toward a new blended workforce model in which companies maintain a small core of direct hire workers supported by a larger outer ring of contractors.

We expect the growth in these areas and in contract staffing as a whole to continue. Click here to read more about our 2014 predictions.