Besides, no one has secretaries nowadays. There was a time when a consultant was another term for an unemployed banker. The stigma has been removed and interim professionals have become an important factor in the work force. In fact, there is a whole new category of workers, the “Permanent Temporary Worker”. Temporary employment is a good way to stay in the work environment, redirect one’s career and keep the cash flow coming. The department of labor estimates there will be 121 million mobile workers in 2011. Over 25% of the work force in the US will consist of temporary workers. With companies looking to cut back on expenses, this will only increase as benefits are becoming increasingly expensive and increasingly mobile – 401’s, Cobra and the like. It is also a good way for employers to cover the irregular gaps in business regeneration. This is why temp hires are a, if not the, leading indicator in job hires and job growth. You may want to consider a temporary professional to solve the needs in special asset restructure, wealth management and even credit analysis. On the flip side, individuals might refocus their job search to cover one of these types of specific skills as a temporary employee as the market rebuilds.
There are several options in hiring interim professionals. If you hire directly, one has to be careful that this is not perceived as dodging providing benefits. You run the risk of a department of Labor violation if you issue a 1099 payment schedule and you have control over those hired. Who controls the workday is the critical factor in determining if one is an employee (W-2) or a consultant (1099). If you hire through an agency, be sure to check whether they pay via a W-2 basis or 1099, as the latter many exclude the temp from coverage under workman’s compensation and the temp agency’s liability insurance. In the 1099 fashion the individual is a consultant for the temp agency, and not its employee, as they would be if hired under a withholding basis. Agencies do this to make a bigger spread at the expense of the temp, and put the employer at risk if a liability should occur.
Tags: Consultant, Interim professional, Temp, Temporary professional, Temporary work