For years, The Cornerstone, the newsletter of Top Echelon contract staffing solutions, was sent to the Preferred Members of Top Echelon Network.  The Cornerstone was eventually discontinued in favor of another newsletter, Contracting Corner, which is now published once a quarter.

However, we still run contracting statistics in select issues of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog.  These statistics include Non-Split Contract Placements, Split Contract Placements, and Non-Recruited Placements, among others.

Below are the most recent statistics regarding contract placements made by Preferred Member recruiters, courtesy of Top Echelon Contracting.

As you can see, 10 of the 13 contract placements listed below bring with them a recruiter share of at least $9.00 per hour.  Not only that, but one of the placements has a share of $20 per hour.  How would you like to work your recruiting desk every day, earning $20 per hour while you make calls and close perm placements?

That can happen, IF you make the decision to add contract staffing to your business model and give Top Echelon Contracting a call to get started.  But first things first . . .

Many of the Top Producers in Top Echelon Network have added contract staffing to their recruiting firm’s business model and have also taken advantage of the services provided by Top Echelon Contracting, the recruiter’s contract placement services.

For more information about the benefits of contract staffing and the services that Top Echelon Contracting provides, call (888) 627-3678, Ext. 2.

(Editor’s Note: This is the next in a series of guest blog posts about contract staffing, courtesy of Top Echelon Contracting, the recruiter’s back-office solution.  Similar posts will appear in future issues of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog.)

For at least the past decade, Americans have been lamenting the loss of jobs to countries overseas.  Everything from call centers to manufacturing operations has been shipped to countries with lower wages and fewer government regulations.

Now it appears that some of those jobs may be coming back home.  A new trend is emerging known as “re-shoring,” which refers to companies that previously off-shored functions bringing those functions back to the United States.  A recent Workforce article points to Apple as an example.

The technology leader, known for making products in China, recently announced that it would be manufacturing some computers in the United States.  While experts don’t expect offshoring to disappear, the Workforce article notes a gradual movement toward bringing work back to the United States, driven by the following factors:

1. Eroding Cost Savings.  As wages and benefits costs increase in China, the amount companies can save by offshoring is decreasing and could go down to single digit percentages for many products.
2. Social Responsibility.  The slow economic recovery has made some successful companies feel responsible for creating jobs at home.
3. Value of Proximity.  Companies are starting to realize the advantages of having team members close together.  For instance, one hotel group interviewed for the article said that having developers located near the company’s business partners is essential for strategic tasks, such as rebuilding the website.
4. U.S.-specific skills.  Some skills are difficult to find overseas.  One example is app development for mobile devices.  U.S. coders are more familiar with writing those apps, so most app development is done with American talent.

Obviously, re-shoring is good for the American workforce . . . and recruiters.  But there’s a catch.  Many of these jobs are going to be filled by contractors.  Companies are still looking to keep their labor costs down.  Contractors help them do that because they are employed by a third party (“back-office”) that pays the employer portion of benefits premiums.  The back-office also takes on the administrative costs and burdens associated with payroll, Workers’ Compensation, Unemployment, employee paperwork and issues, and more.

North Canton, Ohio-based recruiter Mike Aquino told Top Echelon Contracting that a number of companies he’s worked with at his firm, MPA Companies, are bringing work back from overseas due to quality.

“They sent the work overseas because it was cheaper, but quality was horrible and they lost money because it held up production,” Aquino said.  “They’ve decided to bite the bullet and pay more to get it done right in the United States.”

But companies are having trouble finding the skilled workers they need nearby.  That’s where contracting comes in.  Workers from other areas who may be reluctant to relocate may consider moving on a temporary basis to take a contract assignment.  For example, Aquino recently received a call from a client in Texas looking for contractors from Ohio.

Only time will tell how big re-shoring will really be, but it’s obvious that it has already had some impact and that recruiters who can place contractors could especially benefit from this trend.

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888.627.3678
dfledderjohann@topecheloncontracting.com
Connect with Debbie on LinkedIn.
Follow Debbie on Twitter.

(Editor’s Note: This is the next in a series of guest blog posts about contract staffing, courtesy of Top Echelon Contracting, the recruiter’s back-office solution.  Similar posts will appear in future issues of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog.)

It appears the Department of Labor (DOL) will once again be focusing on worker misclassification in 2013.

Staffing Industry Analysts recently reported that the DOL plans to commission a $1.9 million study to determine if workers have knowledge of their employment classification and the implications of that classification.

When a worker is classified as a 1099 Independent Contractor (IC) rather than a W-2 employee, they are not covered by Unemployment or Workers’ Compensation insurance. They are also deprived of minimum wage and overtime pay and do not have taxes automatically withheld from their pay like they would if they were employees.

Because federal law doesn’t currently require employers to inform workers of how they are classified or why, the DOL suspects that workers “may not be prepared for the consequences of misclassification,” according to the Federal Register.  The DOL intends to interview 10,060 workers and 100 executives to gauge workers’ awareness of basic employment laws and the consequences of their classification.

The DOL is soliciting comments on the potential study until March 12.  Additional details, including how to submit comments, are available in the Federal Register.

According to the Federal Register, the practice of misclassifying employees as ICs takes $2.7 billion per year of Social Security, Unemployment, and income taxes out of the federal coffers because companies don’t pay the employer portion of taxes on their ICs. This loss of tax revenue is why the DOL has been cracking down on misclassification over the past few years. Since 2009, the DOL has collected $29 million in back wages for more than 29,000 workers who were determined to be misclassified as 1099 ICs rather than W-2 employees.

As always, we urge you to warn your clients about the dangers of worker misclassification. The DOL is not going away, and the Obama administration’s war against misclassification is only going to intensify, especially since more employers may be tempted to classify workers as 1099 ICs to avoid complying with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) better known as Obamacare.

If you have clients who are utilizing ICs, you can help by offering to convert their ICs to contractors who are W-2 employees of a contract staffing back-office, such as Top Echelon Contracting. The back-office assumes all the employment responsibilities, including providing Unemployment and Workers Compensation insurance, paying the employer portion of taxes, and withholding the appropriate taxes from contractor pay checks. That way, your clients can still enjoy the cost savings of having contractors without the legal risks.

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888.627.3678
dfledderjohann@topecheloncontracting.com
Connect with Debbie on LinkedIn.
Follow Debbie on Twitter.

(Editor’s Note: This is the next in a series of guest blog posts about contract staffing, courtesy of Top Echelon Contracting, the recruiter’s back-office solution.  Similar posts will appear in future issues of The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog.)

One of the questions we get most often from recruiters looking to get into contract staffing is “What are the top industries for contract staffing?”

That’s why we analyze the contract placements that come through our back-office each year.

According to our 2012 placement statistics, the top seven sectors for contract staffing nationwide were as follows:

• Healthcare—29%
• Business Professionals and Support Staff—25%
• Engineering and Manufacturing—16%
• Information Technology—11%
• Finance and Accounting—10%
• HR/Legal/Recruiting—7%
• Sales/Marketing—2%

Healthcare has been a leading industry for contract staffing for years and is only getting stronger as the population continues to age.  Healthcare contractors will likely be even more in demand when the Obamacare “individual mandate” begins requiring individuals to get healthcare coverage, which will send more consumers to already overtaxed healthcare providers.

Last year, we at Top Echelon Contracting increased our focus on helping recruiters make healthcare contract placements.  We ran a number of Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech Language Pathologists, Pharmacists, Pharmacy Techs, and Registered Nurses (RNs) through our back-office in 2012.  That trend has continued into 2013.

We also expanded our Workers’ Comp coverage in 2012 to allow more Engineering and Manufacturing placements in a wider range of environments.  This was our third-largest sector in 2012.

We saw the largest jump in the placement of Business Professionals and Support Staff, which increased 9% over 2011.  Business Professionals and Support Staff were placed in a variety of industries and business sectors.

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888.627.3678
dfledderjohann@topecheloncontracting.com
Connect with Debbie on LinkedIn.
Follow Debbie on Twitter.