You hire temp workers to help you get a project done, but if they aren’t respected in your workplace, this can lead to decreased productivity. While sometimes people aren’t productive because they are lazy, other times, they aren’t productive because they aren’t treated with respect and are excluded. Permanent workers can gossip and bully while management may try to give temporary workers the most hazardous jobs.
If temp workers do not feel respected in your workplace, they may quit for other, better work. Remember that it is not just what the temp worker can do for you, but also what you can do for the temp worker. The temp worker has a duty to complete their work, and you have a duty to ensure that they can do that, with proper training, communication, and by ensuring that they are respected in your workplace.
Working to ensure that temporary workers are respected in your company sets everyone up for success. Here’s how you can do this.
Work With The Staffing Agency
Both the staffing agency and the employer need to work together in order to ensure that OSHA requirements are met. They are jointly responsible for maintaining a safe environment and that there is appropriate training, hazard communication, and recordkeeping.
Some employers try to use temp workers as a way to get around OSHA requirements/worker protections. This makes temp workers more vulnerable to most hazardous jobs, health hazards, workplace safety, and retaliation. They may not receive adequate training or be informed of hazards. You cannot do this.
Both the staffing agency and the employer need to communicate to ensure compliance with workplace health and safety requirements. They share responsibility for worker health and safety. The staffing agency has a duty to ensure that they’re sending workers to a safe workplace. Claimed ignorance of hazards is no excuse.
Host employers must treat temporary workers like any other workers, as stated by OSHA.
The Importance Of Ensuring That Temp Workers Are Respected In Your Workplace
In addition to complying with OSHA regulations, there are other important reasons to ensure that temps are respected in your workplace.
Lack of training and respect can lead to hazardous conditions, workplace injuries, and illnesses. It may cause workers to feel like they have to show up to work even if they are injured/ill, which impacts health and safety.
Workers who feel as though they don’t belong, are treated lesser, and/or aren’t part of a good company culture won’t be as productive and will be more likely to seek other work. Everyone wants to feel valued, needed, and included. The more people feel respected and like what they do matters, the happier and more productive/consistent the workplace will be.
When temp workers are treated well, they do better work, and may even ask about permanent positions.
Ways To Ensure Your Workplace Is Good For Temp Works
#1. Lead By Example
Employees will follow the example management sets. If management treats temp workers with respect, permanent employees are more likely to follow suit.
Regular staff plays a crucial role in how temp workers are treated. Your permanent workers may feel threatened by temp workers or they may think that they are better than temp workers. Remind them that the temp workers are there to help with workload, not replace permanent workers, and that they are just as important as permanent employees.
#2. Set Up A Mentorship Program
Setting up mentors to integrate temporary workers into company culture helps boost moral and make people feel included. It makes people feel like they belong and like you care about them being a part of your workplace.
#3. Watch Your Reviews
Keep an eye on your reviews on sites like Glassdoor for common complaints. One scathing review could be because of someone who just wasn’t a good fit, but common themes in reviews show a consistent problem that needs to be addressed.
Temporary workers commonly remark on how permanent employees bullied them, excluded them, how they felt like they didn’t belong, and how they did not receive adequate training. Common complaints also include having a different workplace setting to permanent employees, being the ones to do all the hazardous work, and feeling like they could not report injuries or take sick days as needed.
#4. Schedule Catch-Up Sessions
Scheduling catch-up sessions gives both you and the temp workers an opportunity for feedback and suggestions. It gives workers a sense of worth, as well as helps your company improve. Both you and the temp workers can comment on areas for improvement, as well as recognize good efforts and positive impacts.
#5. Ensure Equal Standards
This is crucial to ensuring that temp workers are respected in your workplace. Different standards can cause permanent workers to resent temp workers, or temp workers to feel devalued, taken advantage of, and overworked. An even playing field is crucial.
Ensure temp workers have some opportunities as permanent workers, such as break rooms, snacks, coat racks, ergonomic workplaces, etc. Not providing temps with same benefits as permanent workers is a surefire way to make them feel like they don’t belong and aren’t valued. It makes workplace bullying more likely. Temp workers should have the same workplace setting as permanent workers.
#6. Do Not Tolerate Workplace Bullying
As much as people would like to believe that bullies are something you only have to worry about in school and that once people graduate high school bullying stops, this isn’t the case. Bullies are everywhere and can be all ages.
Workplace bullying can destroy an otherwise good workplace. Enact a zero-tolerance policy for workplace bullying and ensure that you address instances of workplace bullying quickly and proactively. For more information about what you can do about workplace bullying, check out our previous blog, What To Do With Workplace Bullying.
If you think your job is unsafe, you can contact OSHA for worker protection information and help.
We’re Here For You
Here at All Trades Staffing Services, we take pride in providing people with opportunities. We work to ensure that workers are productive and qualified and that host employers provide a positive workplace environment for our temp workers. Contact us today for more information about our temp work positions or if you need temp workers for a project.
