What’s the Deal with Temp Jobs?

Temp work is a great way for youth to get a foot in the door with a company in order to prove our excellent work ethic, knowledge and skill set, so that employers will see the benefits of keeping us on past a short-term contract. But temporary work isn’t as peachy as it may seem - particularly for our mental health.

A new Canadian study has found that employees who have been hired on short-term contracts demonstrate more signs of depression than workers with full-time positions. The study found that temp workers showed about 2 more symptoms of depression than full-time staff members. Great! As if we need anything else on our plates, especially during these particularly stressful economic times. And the bad news doesn’t end there. Apparently, the psychological impact of having a non-permanent job gets worse with time. I guess a temp job shouldn’t be for an extended period of time – duh, it’s temporary! But if you continue to bounce from one temp position to the next, it seems like you’d be more likely to experience some unpleasant emotional consequences. I’m feeling depressed just thinking about it!

So far in the Cross Canada Dialogues (CCD) survey, 61% of you (439 respondents) said that having job security is something important to you in your own job. One of you guys noted in our survey “I have been struggling to find permanent work. It is definitely depressing.” – Down in the Dumps.

While I was flipping through the most recent results from the CCD survey (which is still in progress, so the numbers aren’t final), I noticed that almost two-thirds of you have held at least one non-permanent position (e.g. seasonal, temporary, term, contract, casual, etc.) within the past year. Apparently, temp jobs have been on the rise in recent years, as this field of work grew two times faster than permanent employment over the past few years.

Not to mention, the pay is lower by 16% for temp workers than for those with the same job, working on a permanent basis. How rude! And now with the recession, it seems like it’s becoming difficult even to find non-permanent work. One of you noted “I’ve been affected by the recession because I usually go to the temp agencies and now there is very little temp work and absolutely no full-time work out there.” –Frustrated & Discouraged

Companies probably think that they’re benefiting from hiring short-term employees by reducing costs. But maybe they should think again! If your workforce is depressed and anxious, it’s far more likely that your workers will also be calling in sick on a regular basis. Not to mention they’ll likely have poorer productivity levels while on the job - it’s pretty distracting to concentrate at work when your mental state is sub-par.

So why is it that employers favour hiring youth in non-permanent positions? Youth have a lot to offer at the workplace. So far in the CCD survey 80% (613) of you guys expressed why you think an employer should hire youth. Here’s what you guys had to say about this topic in our survey:

“I think that youth have a lot to offer in a place of work because they bring new talent to the force with new ideas and outlooks on things.” -Fresh Take

“Our skills and talents are up to date. We are willing to learn and improve. Youth are able to offer employer commitment and new skills.” -Clever & Capable

“Youth can be extremely hard working, dedicated, motivated, inspired and loyal.” -Right for the Job

“An employer should hire youth to get a fresh and new perspective on their business. Also, youth have lots of energy and are willing to direct that energy towards the job.” -Energized & Original

“Youth can offer a wide variety of skills such as knowledge on the latest trends and experience with social networking.” –Tech Savvy

Why do you think employers should hire youth? What do you think about temporary positions, and what are the pros and cons of taking on this type of work? What has your experience been with temp jobs?

[This blog reflects opinions of Canadian youth expressed in the Cross Canada Dialogues survey and is funded by the Counselling Foundation of Canada. For more information on Johnny MacDonald, you can see his profile here.]