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Using temporary staff could help employers cut costs in times of high interest rates and a strong dollar, said Select Personnel managing director Karen Bardwell.
"If employers are holding off hiring but are looking at trying out a new market on a short-term basis, temping is an option. Some companies carry staff for peak times but that is not a good strategy in hard times."
Select had changed its focus from just growing its customer base to putting more energy into recruiting and retaining casual and temporary employees, she said.
Select made sure it knew how to "capture" those people when they came to Dunedin, either as students or between jobs. If people were laid off, Select tried to contact them as soon as possible with the aim of either getting them into full-time work or using them as temporary workers until a full-time position came along. "It makes good sense as we are the employers of the temporary staff and carry that risk."
Bardwell also recommended employers worked hard to retain current staff rather than having to recruit and train new staff. In tight times, productivity was important to profitability and everyone wanted their staff working at the optimum level.
Otago-Southland Employers Association chief executive Duncan Simpson agreed.
Investing in more training for existing staff made good economic sense rather than having to attract and train new staff at the same time as wondering if they were going to fit in.
Employers should stand back and look at things like employment satisfaction, staff turnover, sickness and absenteeism in their businesses, he said.
"Looking around your premises and asking yourself if you would want to work here, is a good start."
More staff involvement helped satisfaction levels and a suggestion box was a good tool, Simpson said.
"Employers are finding that rather than an extra compliance cost, the health and safety committees have devolved into an opportunity to engage with staff."
Staff comment on things like bottlenecks in the production process and how they can be eased, he said.
- Otago Daily Times
