Workforce Trend: Temporary Jobs are Here to Stay as Part of Post-Pandemic Workforce, PeopleReady Survey Finds

The rise in importance of temporary jobs during the pandemic has been undeniable as businesses look to navigate an unpredictable climate. A new survey out today from staffing leader PeopleReady finds that many companies (40%) are planning to make temporary jobs a permanent part of their post-pandemic workforce model.

In the past year, 52% of companies have increased their use of temporary workers and cited the need to scale their workforce as the top reason. The PeopleReady survey of both hiring managers and workers found that most workers (65%) are considering temporary or part-time work to earn more income amid a rough economy. Additionally, the number of those taking full-time jobs has declined by 56% since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020. In comparison, those taking temporary jobs has increased by 66%, and those accepting part-time employment has risen by 13%.

“Temporary jobs have become vital to both businesses and job seekers over the past year and our research indicates that will only increase in the future,” said Taryn Owen, president of PeopleReady. “As temporary jobs become increasingly integrated into workforce models, we are focused on making it faster and easier to connect people and work.”

To make it easier for job seekers to connect with available temporary jobs, PeopleReady is holding a nationwide hiring event this week. The staffing company has a variety of ways for job seekers to access potential job opportunities: via app (JobStack), online (jobs.peopleready.com) and in person (at PeopleReady locations across the nation).

Other key findings from the PeopleReady survey include:

• 74% of hiring managers say the pandemic has changed how they staff their workforce.
• 53% of companies increased their use of staffing firms during the last year.
• The overwhelming majority (77%) of people now know someone who has lost a job in the past year.
• Most Americans feel the job market is either getting worse (54%) or staying the same as it has for the past several months (22%).

About the survey: The PeopleReady survey of hiring managers and employees was conducted between Dec. 19, 2020, and Jan. 2, 2021. The margin of error is +/- 4%.

About PeopleReady

PeopleReady, a TrueBlue company (NYSE: TBI), specializes in quick and reliable on-demand labor and its skilled trades division focuses on providing highly skilled tradespeople. PeopleReady supports a wide range of blue-collar industries, including construction, energy, manufacturing and logistics, waste and recycling, and hospitality. Leveraging its game-changing JobStack platform and 600-plus branch offices across all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Canada, PeopleReady served approximately 98,000 businesses and put approximately 221,000 people to work in 2020. Learn more at www.peopleready.com or www.skilled.peopleready.com.

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