A report developed by Hays Spain provided information of interest for Latin America

How is the working life of a temporary worker? Is he/she benefited by work-life balance? Does he/she obtain more income than a full-time permanent worker or is he/she isolated while waiting for new projects to come? According to experts of Hays, it might be a combination of the four facts just mentioned.

Currently, 69% of people looking for a job in Spain are willing to consider a temporary assignment, while 14% already works in that way. For that reason, Hays –a company that provides recruiting services- has provided the nine keys to understand the implications of being a temporary worker.

To begin with, experts state that “personal branding must never be interrupted”, even we you already gotten the job.

“It is key to remember how important it is to have new challenges and goals; thinking what new roles we would like to have, particularly starting by the organization we are in at the time and wondering whether there is an option to access to other areas or departments where we can improve our skills. Showing our interest, especially to the HR department, may grant us new opportunities”, they say.

In addition, new skills must be acquired permanently. Being constantly updated and learning new skills is essential for any worker, but it is particularly important for temporary workers.

Hays’ experts state that in order to remain a long term temporary worker it is necessary to invest in continuous learning and development. “Those who hire will only pay higher wages to those who have specific pertinent experience on the industry where they work, adequate knowledge on the latest technology and the latest industry trends”, they claim.

Thirdly, it is important to accept that uncertainty and changes will be constant in the working life. For that reason, temporary professionals must be always prepared to face challenges.

Most temporary assignments have a finalization date but, in certain cases, the period of time may be expanded. Likewise, plans may be altered and the finalization date may come sooner. In those cases, “people involved must understand the situation and act accordingly”, they say.

The fourth key is to act accordingly to a professional. “When it comes to a professional working on temporary assignments, he/she must quickly absorb the policies, procedures, and the culture of the organization hiring his/her services”, say the experts, while pointing out that the launch must be “brief but effective”.

Another important issue is to set the distance between personal and professional life, something frequent in these workers lives, who silence their mobiles or do not use their professional e-mail to tend personal matters, or time at work to get to know their colleagues, but instead connect with them through LinkedIn.

This point takes us to the next key: a temporary professional will probably have only a few friends at work and the most probable thing is that these shall be distant relationships.

The seventh point refers to expectations. The working life of a temporary professional is, in a way, conditioned by the expectations laid on temporary workers. In their case, the expected results and skills are higher than in the case of those who work at the office on a permanent basis.

“A situation that, while it is a motivation and a reason to thrive for most temporary worker, for other it may be discouraging”, they point out.

In addition, there is a need to set new goals in order to move forward. When a temporary professional is assigned to a new organization, a brief introduction is made and he/she immediately starts working. “No job will be the same between two organizations. Therefore, the person must be dynamic and highly adaptable”.

Finally, the experts claim that the working life of a temporary employee may grant maximum freedom. Besides, a common denominator strongly linked to temporary workers’ profiles is they find it easy to meet new people and relate in changing environments.