Temps are one of the best ways of running your business. They provide great support and allow you to expand and shrink your workforce easily. But remember that while nearly all staffing companies are great, it still pays to do your homework. With even a couple of rogue staffing companies that charge poor wages or put their workers into hazardous conditions, it's important to know a staffing company's history and background – if it keeps itself not only legal but highly ethical.
Five people at Toronto-based Platinum Care were arrested in a scam involving the Canadian Temporary Foreign Worker Program, according to Staffing Industry Analysts. While this might not seem to affect those in America, it does. The U.S. has its own problems with temporary foreign workers who come to the U.S. with the H-1B visa. Employers need to stay informed about laws regarding these complicated matters. Hiring a well-regarded employer of record is the first step to getting temporary workers who will work hard for a company.
Another major concern is the problem with unpaid interns. Human Resources Online reports that it's likely many companies do not meet the six requirements put forth by the Department of Labor for their unpaid internship program and are under risk for being penalized by the government or sued by their interns. Interns have a very strict program of activities. They are effectively students in a working environment, and must be treated like students. They cannot do work that displaces staff activities. In other words, they cannot be used as free temporary workers.
In other to avoid this, it may be best simply to hire temps. This sidesteps the entire legal and ethical difficulty, and also benefits those who want to learn from a company and are willing to work hard in order to do it. Temporary workers can be just as effective as permanent labor, but they are much easier to manage, since everything is through the employer of record.
