Employment agencies help employers find qualified applicants for their job openings, and they help job seekers find suitable jobs for their chosen careers.
They hire for companies that want to fill available positions.
For companies seeking new employees, an agency may alleviate the task of weeding through thousands of unqualified applicants. For job hunters, an agency may speed up the process and provide opportunities they may not have considered.
You may have learned that job agencies or staffing agencies are not particularly helpful to job seekers, as they only offer entry level or temporary positions. However, these agencies may help you find a variety of different jobs in a variety of careers.
Positions range from temporary to full-time depending on your needs and the needs of a company. Discover more about job placement services and the advantages of working with an agency below.
Difference Between Temp Agencies and Employment Agencies
It is important to note that a temp agency is slightly different from a standard job employment agency. Temp agencies work with a variety of different companies to offer their clients short-term job positions. The short-term position may be characterized by a contract that terminates in less than a year or a job that is labeled as indefinite.
An employer may offer you a temporary position because it acts as a trial period. If you do well in the temp position, you may become a permanent employee. If you do not do well, the company may choose not to rehire you.
Other temporary positions may be seasonal. This is common for companies that make the most money during certain times of the year, such as theme parks or holiday stores. These may good opportunities if you are looking for an extra income during a certain period, such as around the holidays.
While a temporary position may not provide you with the job security of a salaried job, it may give you a foot in the door and help you learn new skills.
Note that temporary employment agencies operate in the same way as standard employment agencies. They are hired by companies looking to alleviate the stress on their human resources departments and find qualified candidates.
What does a job placement service do?
Employment services are paid for by a company to find ideal job applicants who are likely to be successful in the company.
If you are looking for jobs, you may apply for opportunities through the employment or staffing agency. You may also contact the agency directly, explain your position and ask about opportunities.
Generally, the agency will set up an interview with you and then work with a company to get you an appropriate job. From there, the agency pays you to work for that particular company.
At this point, temp job agencies begin to sound similar to staffing agencies. This is because the company may choose not to hire you for a permanent position after you have worked there for a certain amount of time and received payment from the staffing agency.
It is different, however, because temp agencies do not typically pay you to work in a temporary position.
If an employer decides to hire you, it will begin paying you directly. The employment or staffing agency will then receive compensation for hiring you.
Advantages of Using a Job Placement Service
An employment agency may benefit both employers and job seekers in a variety of ways. For an employer, the agency may have a far bigger applicant pool and be able to match applicants with different companies.
For job seekers, the services provided by the agency are typically free. The agency works for the employers, not the applicants. This means that it only needs to receive payment from the employer.
Furthermore, job placement agencies may perform a lot of the work for you. When you meet with an agent at the agency, he or she will gather information about your skills, experience and which careers may be right for you.
The agent may begin researching jobs that are suited to your skillset and send you several options. He or she may also allow you to search for jobs on the agency’s job site, which may not be open to the general public.
In addition, your agent may send you jobs that you may not have considered, especially if your skills are suited for a number of different positions. In this case, you will be able to expand your opportunities. Even if you plan to work from home.
Finally, a job placement agency may provide you with valuable feedback on your interview skills, resume and communication skills. Even if you decide to leave a job that was offered to you through an employment agency, you will be able to use this feedback for the rest of your career.
Examples of Job Placement Services
It is important to research different job placement services to find the one that suits you best. Below are several examples of highly-rated job placement agencies.
- Kelly Services. This agency began as a temporary staffing agency and has since expanded to offer job seekers a wide variety of opportunities. Its main employers offer positions in education, science, engineering, office and light industrial work and managed service provider work. The company also offers services in 30 different countries. Job seekers may use the website for free to look for different opportunities.
- Randstad. This is another employment and recruitment agency that lists temporary to permanent job opportunities. Randstad is also one of the largest staffing agencies worldwide and one of the largest firms in the U.S. Like Kelly Services, there is no Randstad application to fill out in order to use the website. Simply visit the site and begin your research.
- Adecco. This is another large and extremely successful job placement agency that provides job opportunities worldwide. As with other agencies, Adecco supports a variety of charities and is a member of several different councils that help minorities and women with job placements. The Adecco application is meant to be relatively simple and acts as an initial informational tool to match you with an agent.
- Insight Global. This is an employment service that works in the IT, accounting and finance, engineering and government sectors. The jobs listed on its website include temporary positions, temp to hire positions, direct hire job listings and managed services.
