(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.)

The myth that workers only become contractors to obtain a direct hire position has been officially debunked by a recent Randstad study.

Over 2,000 employed adults were surveyed for the Randstad Workforce360 Study. The study found that 78% of the temporary/contract workers surveyed felt their experience was positive.  In fact, many have chosen contract work over direct hire positions for the following reasons:

• Schedule flexibility (selected by 31% of respondents)
• Better pay (28%)
• More control over career (21%)

Of the temporary/contract workers surveyed, 86% reported that their level of job satisfaction was very good or excellent, compared to 73% of permanent/direct hire employees.  In addition, 54% of the contractors strongly agreed with the statement, “I am paid what I’m worth.” Only 42% of direct hires stated the same.

In addition, the survey found that one-third of contractors occupy high-level positions. This relates to a trend Top Echelon® Contracting has reported on numerous times called executive temping.

One of the biggest reasons recruiters don’t offer contract staffing is that they’re afraid they won’t be able to find candidates.  This study shows that candidates’ attitudes toward contract staffing have changed dramatically.  Contract positions are no longer the jobs they take because a direct position is not available. More and more, candidates are choosing contract positions over traditional employment.

The only way you’ll know if your candidates are willing to work as contractors is to ask them.  You may be surprised by how many would prefer the option to work on contract.

And if you run your contractors through TEC’s back-office, they’ll be happy to know that they’ll be offered a full menu of benefits, including healthcare insurance offered through Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield.  This is in addition to a weekly paycheck with the option of direct deposit.

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(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.)

The increased use of contractors over the past few years is more than just a knee-jerk reaction to the recession, according to a recent survey by Randstad.

The Randstad Workforce360 Study found that companies are beginning to view blended workforces – those that include a mix of traditional employees and contingent workers – as a long-term business strategy.

Of the 225 human resource managers surveyed, 67% are using contractors in some capacity. In addition, 71% of companies with blended workforces reported that the flexibility provided by their contractors has allowed them to “remain nimble” in the uncertain economy. Twenty-one percent of the companies surveyed plan to increase their contract worker population in the next year.

“What used to be viewed as a temporary stop-gap measure, the utilization of a contingent workforce alongside full-time talent is no longer a contingency plan,” Managing Director of Human Resources for Randstad US Jim Link said in a press release. “We believe this integrated staffing model will be fundamental to operational and fiscal success for the foreseeable future.”

This is no surprise to us at Top Echelon Contracting. We have noticed that companies are taking their use of contractors beyond what is typical in an economic recovery. In fact, many are implementing a whole new workforce strategy in which they maintain a core group of employees supplemented by a more flexible outer ring of contractors. As a result, Top Echelon Contracting experienced a 22% increase in commercial contract placements in 2011 and is seeing a continued upward trend this year.

This is good news for recruiters as it represents a whole new crop of placement opportunities. If you have previously only placed direct hire candidates, now is the perfect time to pursue contract staffing job orders.

The process for placing contractors is essentially the same as placing direct hires. In many cases it is actually easier because contract placements typically happen much quicker as companies try to meet an immediate need or deadline.

To learn how to add contract staffing to your business model, download our FREE Contract Training Kit.

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(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.)

As the number of mobile devices and users increases rapidly,contractors are helping the wireless telecommunications industry keep up with the demand.

More than 3.8 million Americans are employed in this sector, which accounts for 2.6% of all U.S. employment, according to CTIA, the International Association for the Wireless Telecommunications Industry.  The association also predicts that wireless broadband investment will create as many as 205,000 jobs in the United States by 2015.

“Wireless providers are working feverishly to expand their network capacity, and the proliferation of smartphones, iPads, video conferencing, etc., are driving that demand in all sectors,” said Mike Zarnek, Executive Recruiter and President of Z Search Recruiting.

To keep up, wireless telecommunications companies must find workers with specific technical expertise in the industry.  But at the same time, they are not ready to commit to direct hires.  As a result, Zarnek, who has been recruiting in the industry for over 30 years, is seeing a “definite increase” in client requests for contractors.

“Contract staffing allows our clients to increase productivity without increasing overhead,” said Zarnek.  “Contract staffing is a practical management solution for covering peak workloads, extended absences, special projects, and more.  Employees are the foundation of any successful organization, while also being an expense.  Using contractors in certain situations shifts a fixed expense to a variable expense that can be increased or decreased based upon business needs.”

Z Search Recruiting provides direct hire and contract staffing solutions to the entire wireless industry, including the Wireless Carrier Market, RF, Microwave, DAS, Mobile Content, Mobile Advertising, 4G Infrastructure Providers, Mobile Handheld Device Manufacturers, LTE Infrastructure Providers, Network Monitoring and Optimization Services, Public Safety Communications, Antenna Design Firms, and Wireless Test and Measurement Services.

The firm utilizes the contract staffing back-office services of Top Echelon® Contracting (TEC) for its contract staffing placements. TEC has worked with Zarnek on 729 placements in this niche since 1996.

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888.627.3678
dfledderjohann@topecheloncontracting.com
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(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.)

The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH Act), which provides funding to healthcare providers for the adoption and “meaningful use” of EHRs, has generated a huge demand for health IT professionals.

This demand has created a new niche for recruiters who have the ability to place professionals with the unique skill set needed to fill these positions.

One recruiter who is focusing his efforts on this niche is Raymond Gooch, CPC, of Spectrum Career, LLC, who also serves on the faculty at a local college for the ONC’s Health IT Workforce Development training program and is strategically aligned with the HIT Midwest Consortium of Colleges and the Ohio Hospital Association (OHA) to promote individuals successfully completing the training program.

Gooch says that healthcare providers need IT professionals who are not only technically skilled, but who can also communicate effectively with medical professionals.  This is a hard combination to come by.

The need is so great that many larger healthcare organizations are on a never-ending search for experienced professionals.  The challenge is that experienced health IT professionals are in extremely short supply.

“I’ve had hospitals tell me, word for word, ‘I have no problem finding quality IT professionals on my own, but I can’t find quality IT professionals that understand healthcare,’” Gooch said.  “Hospitals would strongly prefer individuals who have a healthcare background and have crossed over into IT. That’s a slim pool of people.”

According to a recent HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) survey, the lack of adequate staffing resources was the main barrier to IT implementation for 25% of healthcare providers surveyed.

Hospitals and other healthcare providers often choose contractors to fill their open health IT positions, Gooch said.  Cost containment is a major reason.  Often, providers only need to augment their staff for the completion of specific, short-term health IT initiatives.

“Projects are often implemented in a burst of activity, and then they trail off,” Gooch said.  “For example, a hospital may need Health IT Implementation professionals for several months, and then when the implementation phase is over, they don’t need them anymore.  Smaller physician practices can’t afford a full-time IT professional on staff, so contractors are a great solution.”

Top Echelon Contracting (TEC) has noticed steady growth in the number of health IT contract placements.  Some of the hottest positions include the following:

•  Clinical IT Consultants
•  Healthcare IT Epic Analysts
•  Healthcare Systems Analysts
•  Meditech Clinical App Consultants
•  Meditech LIS Consultants
•  Meditech Pharmacy Systems Analysts

— — —

888.627.3678
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(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.)

There’s no doubt that contract staffing is on the rise, as is usually the case in an economic recovery. But what really makes this surge in contract staffing unique is where the growth is happening.

Much of that growth is happening in the C-Suite.  In the Third Quarter 2012 edition of the Contracting Corner, Joanie Ruge, Senior Vice President and Chief Employment Analyst for Randstad Holding U.S. told Top Echelon Contracting that companies are looking for a more flexible workforce model with contractors at all different levels, extending all the way to the C-Suite.

In a trend known as executive temping, companies are bringing in high-level executives on a contract basis, sometimes for as long as a year or two, Ruge said. This is quite a contrast from the days when “temp staffing” was limited to office, clerical, blue collar positions.

A recent www.nrp.com article titled “For Temp Workers, ‘Temp’ Looking More Permanent,” also highlights this trend. Ed Schultz, who has worked on a contract basis as an acting comptroller or CFO for numerous companies over the past decade, told www.npr.com that companies thinned out their C-suites during the recession. While the recovery has created more of a demand for executives to handle mergers and acquisitions, companies are still not hiring full-time.

“My feeling is that it’s a permanent change,” he said. “It’s a sea of change that we’re seeing more activity in that interim C-suite area.”

Executive temping is a win-win for both the company and the executives.  Companies, of course, save on the high cost of executive benefits packages and have the ability to only pay the steep price for an executive when they need one.  Executives enjoy the more flexible schedule and the ability to take on a variety of challenging projects.

It’s also a win for recruiters.  Companies often need help finding these high-level individuals. By finding and placing them as contractors, you can earn a hefty hourly income over the length of their contract, not to mention a nice conversion fee if the company decides they do need full-time help and coverts them to a direct hire.

— — —

888.627.3678
dfledderjohann@topecheloncontracting.com
Connect with Debbie on LinkedIn.
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(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.)

In the 19th century, it was the Industrial Revolution.  In the 1950’s, it was the shift from blue collar to white collar work. And some are predicting that we are now at the beginning of another workforce revolution: a shift from permanent employment to contingent work.

In his book Labor Rising, The Past and Future of Working People in America (a portion of which was reprinted in the Huffington Post), Richard Greenwald refers to it as the “Gig Economy” where workers “jump from job to job, career to career, project to project working as consultants.” He contends that this could be “the most fundamental economic shift of the past 50 years” and compares it to the 1950’s when “America became a nation of white-collar workers, leaving behind its blue-collar roots.”

“This sea of change has brought with it a new work ethic that values multitasking, embedded communities of workers, the blending of leisure and work activity, and the rise of creativity and independence, along with money as co-measures of success,” Greenwald said. “We seem to be returning to a craft sensibility as workers blend leisure and work and work harder, faster, and longer, but also find time to squeeze in a social life, too.”

Greenwald estimates that 50% of all workers will be working on a contingent basis by 2020. Thomas Fisher, Dean of the College of Design a the University of Minnesota, cites similar statistics in his article “The Contingent Workforce and Public Decision Making” in the Public Sector Digest. He states that 40-45% of workers will be contingent by 2020, and by 2030, contingent workers will be the majority in what he refers to as the “next economy.”

“In this next economy, workers will have much more flexibility in terms of how, when, and where they work, and they will have, over the course of their careers, many professional engagements and even several different careers altogether rather than the long-term, relatively permanent employment of the old economy,” Fisher said in the article.

We all know that the use of contingent workers has surged since the recession. Does this mean we are witnessing the start of a revolution? What do you think?

— — —

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(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.)

What does a worker who has only been out of work for a month have in common with one who has been unemployed for six months to a year?

It appears they are both just as likely to be rejected for a job based on their employment status (or lack thereof), even as legislators move to make “unemployed discrimination” illegal.

A recent Huffington Post article discusses a study in which 47 human resource professionals were asked to review resumes that were identical except that half stated the candidate was currently employed, and the other half indicated the candidate had been unemployed for one month.  The HR professionals gave the currently employed candidate higher marks for competence and hireability.

The study also found that unemployed candidates who are laid off are not viewed any more favorably than those who quit their jobs.  However, candidates who were laid off because the company went under do appear to get more sympathy.

Employer’s’ preference for selecting candidates who are currently employed is nothing new, but the practice came under fire last year when job postings emerged specifically stating that unemployed candidates would not be considered.  As a result, lawmakers on both the state and federal level have considered legislation against unemployed discrimination.

New Jersey passed a law last year banning job ads that are found to discriminate against unemployed candidates. This past May, the District of Columbia took it a step further with legislation that made unemployed status a protected class, according to the Littler Mendelson law firm.  The law makes it illegal for employers in the District of Columbia to refuse to hire candidates based on their employment status.

So what are you seeing out there in the trenches?  Do employers tend to reject unemployed candidates, even if they have only been out of work a short amount of time?

— — —

888.627.3678
dfledderjohann@topecheloncontracting.com
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(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.)

In response to the growing need for skilled labor in the engineering and manufacturing sector, Top Echelon Contracting has worked with our insurance underwriters to allow the placement of more CNC machinists in a wider variety of work environments.

TEC already places a wide range of professionals in engineering and manufacturing positions.  In fact, engineering and manufacturing accounted for 18% of TEC placements last year.  As more manufacturing jobs are coming back to the United States, we wanted to expand our ability to place CNC machinists to address the growing need.

Alan Carty, President and CEO of Automationtechies and Automation.com, recently spoke to us about the role of CNC machinists in today’s industries.

“The CNC machinist job is dramatically different from the machinist role of 20-plus years ago,” Carty said.  “Today it is a hybrid position that not only requires the traditional machinist’s skills, but more technically advanced skills, such as CNC programming.”

Carty added that the need for skilled workers is tied closely to the increasing factory automation.

“Companies have been holding back because of the economy, but now the time has come to expand and start hiring,” Carty said.  “There is currently a strong demand for factory automation professionals.  In our niche, we are seeing more and more openings for process control engineers and automation/controls engineers, along with a multitude of other automation related opportunities.”

However, many of those openings are going unfilled as manufacturers struggle to find workers with the needed skills.  Manufacturing jobs, which were previously dominated by lower-skilled positions that only required a high school diploma, have changed dramatically since the recession.  Today’s jobs require some form of higher education or training.  But CFO.com reported that fewer than 10% of American teenagers are planning to pursue skilled-trade careers.

According to a recent survey by Deloitte Consulting and the Manufacturing Institute, there are approximately 600,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs.  Of the more than 1,100 manufacturing executives surveyed, two-thirds reported that they are facing a moderate to severe shortage of skilled labor.

Carty, who has been recruiting since 2000 and has a strong background in both direct hire and contract staffing, said there is currently a stronger demand for direct hire in his niche.  But he believes that as the number of automation projects continues to increase, contract staffing will also grow in this sector.

Contract staffing can help manufacturers with their automation projects and expansions in a number of ways.  First, contracting allows them to quickly bring in experienced skilled workers who can immediately have a positive impact on production.  Contractors also allow manufacturers to adjust their workforce based on the current demand for their products. They can utilize contractors when business is strong, and when there is a dip in business, they can end contract assignments without the negative press of a layoff.  In addition, contract staffing allows manufacturers to retain or bring back retirees who are already trained in their specific skill set.

CNC machinist opportunities span a wide range of industries and risk factors.  To find out if TEC can accept your CNC machinist contract placements, call us at (888) 627-3678.

— — —

888.627.3678
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(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.)

The Sacramento Business Journal recently reported that lawsuits under the Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA) have risen 33% over the past three years.  With that in mind, it seems like a good time to discuss when contractors must be paid for overtime.

First, let’s clarify what we mean by contractors. We’re are not talking about 1099 Independent Contractors.  We’re talking about workers who are placed on a contract basis at a client company and who are W-2 employees of a third party.

The FLSA requires that most W-2 employees be paid at a rate of 1.5 times their regular pay rate for any hours worked over 40 in a work week.  Some states have more stringent requirements.  For instance, workers in California must be paid overtime for any hours worked over eight in a day.

The FLSA does allow certain employees to be classified as exempt from overtime.  To be exempt, employees must also fall into one of the following classifications and be paid at least $455 a week on a salary (not hourly) basis:

• Executive
• Administrative
• Learned Professional

Keep in mind, however, that just calling someone an executive, for example, does not automatically make them exempt.  They must meet certain requirements to be considered exempt under one of these classifications.  Please see the exempt requirements provided on the Department of Labor’s website.

The rules are a little different for professionals working in computer-related and outside sales occupations.  Employees meeting the requirements for the computer-related exemption can be paid at an hourly rate if they are paid at least $27.63 per hour ($38.89 per hour in California).  Additionally, the salary requirements do not apply to those under the outside sales exemption.

If you’re placing contractors and run your own back-office, you are responsible for properly classifying contractors as exempt or non-exempt and paying overtime when required.  But even if you’re utilizing a contract staffing back-office that handles those responsibilities, it’s important that you’re aware of the requirements of the FLSA since your clients often look to you as an employment expert.

(This article is for informational purposes ONLY and should not be considered legal advice.)

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(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.)
Not so long ago, many people felt compelled to choose between their career or family.  Now, as buzz phrases like “work-life balance” take over the workplace, the focus is on “having it all.”

While having it all may sound great in theory, it’s hard to come by in practice.  Juggling a full-time job and family responsibilities (which for many workers includes caring for children AND elderly parents) is not for the faint of heart.

That’s why, according to a recent Wall Street Journal article, many skilled professionals are turning to contract staffing.  In what the article calls “a major shift,” temporary/contract placements of college-educated professionals has outpaced those of clerical and blue-collar temps.

In fact, placements of contractors in healthcare, technology, engineering, science, law, and accounting are expected to make up 52% of the expected $100.3 billion staffing industry revenue in 2012, according to the article, citing Staffing Industry Analysts statistics.

The article states that the reason for this shift is that workers are trying to find work with a more flexible or part-time schedule.  Contract/temporary work is a viable route to flexible work, particularly for those with in-demand skills such as engineering, IT, programming, and social media.

The article further states that these workers make between $20-$200 an hour, but typically do not get benefits.  This is where you, as a recruiter, can really make a difference.  Lack of benefits is a major factor that often holds candidates back from considering contract work.

But you could place your highly skilled candidates as contractors and outsource their employment to a contract staffing back-office, such as Top Echelon Contracting, that provides them with benefits.  That way, they can enjoy the flexibility that is possible through contracting without missing out on the benefits they can gain through traditional, full-time employment.

As a recruiter, your job is to provide your clients with the best of the best.  By providing candidates with the opportunity to “have it all,” you can attract the highest caliber talent and, as a result, attract the best placement opportunities.

— — —

888.627.3678
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