Contingency Staffing: The Guardian of Productivity
The unexpected happens. But when you have a plan to deal with unplanned labor disruptions, you can overcome the unexpected and protect revenue.
Contingency Staffing: The Guardian of Productivity
The unexpected happens. But when you have a plan to deal with unplanned labor disruptions, you can overcome the unexpected and protect revenue.
What is Contingency Staffing?
Contingency staffing is typically deployed in response to labor disputes, natural disasters, or any crisis situation to help companies return to normal operations quickly. It ensures open positions are quickly filled and managed so that production restrictions are eliminated, operations are maintained and commitments to customers are met.
Features of effective contingency staffing include:
- A national talent pool
- Fly-in or drive-In options, depending on the urgency
- A turnkey approach, including travel and accommodations, logistics, workmen’s comp, payroll and more
- Workforce management to provide structure and ensure workers arrive as a group each day prior to their scheduled shift
Ask the Right Questions
To determine if contingency staffing is right for you, ask yourself the following:
- What is the impact on my business if my open positions are not filled?
- Is the labor from local staffing agencies qualified?
- Are high turnover and no-shows impacting my operational stability?
- What is the actual cost of high turnover?
- Are managers experiencing training fatigue from the high turnover of my current staffing agency?
- Can my staffing agencies source the number of workers I need within the time frame that I need them?
- If labor from local staffing agencies are not qualified, are time and money spent on training worth it or would it be more cost-effective to hire experienced skilled labor from other areas?
Benefits of Contingency Staffing
Having a Labor Contingency Plan will allow you to:
- Access skilled replacement workers quickly.
- Ensure production meets OEM Quality Assurance.
- Maximize productivity and throughput during labor disruptions.
- Avoid pulling unqualified people from other positions to fill the gap.
- Reduce hazardous work conditions and potential OSHA compliance violations.
- Secure reliable contingency staffing partners that can respond quickly to your predefined needs.
Temp Vs. Contingent: Weighing the Value
Temp Staffing Agency and Contingent Staffing Services have different strengths and are useful in different situations:
| Feature/Benefits | Temp Agency | Contingent Solution |
| Talent | Lower cost if local resources are available, not reliable if the talent is not available. | Higher cost with reliability and certainty the positions will be filled. |
| Talent Quality | Variable quality and ability to meet job specs, based on limits of the local talent pool. | Higher quality and reliability due to the ability to draw upon a national talent pool. |
| On-Site Management | Oversee processes for efficiency and controlling costs of labor. | Oversee personnel for fast workforce integration and maximum productivity. |
| Business Continuity | Determined by the availability and quality of local talent and lack of training and on-site management. | The time needed to recruit, deploy & train is offset by onsite management and higher quality talent. |
| Speed | Fastest in terms of getting bodies onsite immediately. | Fast with personnel on-site usually within 48 to 72 hours. |
| Productivity | Slower. High turnover, lower skill levels can reduce even further. | Fastest. Higher quality talent, better alignment with on-site management. |
| Market Response | Fastest response, if talent is available. Productivity uncertain. | Fastest productivity, talent and management is available. |