May 17, 2023
Temping offers a unique opportunity for you to gain valuable work experience, learn about different companies and industries, expand your professional networks and skills, and potentially find long-term employment opportunities. But what is it and how does it work?
What is temping, and what is it not?
The nature of temporary work, (temping), has become increasingly diverse over the years. It can include project-based work, assistance during busy or transitional periods, filling in during employee absences, or serving as an interim resource until a permanent hire is made. Whatever the reason for the assignment the work is typically short-term in nature, ending at an agreed point in time or at the conclusion of the specified work.
Temping should not be confused with working as an independent contractor, who is engaged to deliver a particular outcome for the business, and will invoice for their time at an agreed hourly or daily rate. An independent contract also gets no provision for holidays or sick leave and must manage their own tax. Most independent contractors will also need to be GST registered. For this reason most contractors are more senior and more specialised.
How does it work?
As a casual employee you have the same rights to holiday pay, sick leave or statutory/public holiday pay as a permanent employee. That means you’ll simply submit your hours each week and be paid the next week net of PAYE tax. Any accumulated annual leave is paid out upon completion of your assignment. It makes temping very easy, with payroll forms the only real administration…oh, and chasing your supervisor to approve your hours!
In most cases, temporary assignments are often through a recruitment agency, however some companies also employ temps directly.
Temporary assignments are available across a range of sectors and assignments can vary in terms of duration. From 1-day sick leave cover, 3-month project or a 12-month maternity leave opportunity and anything in between.
Busting the myths or perception of temping
There is a myth that temping won’t look great on your CV or be an advantageous career move – however we can easily debunk that!
There are legitimate times in your life where temping is the perfect solution and easily explained to a future employer (see more below). It also shows you can hit the ground running, learn, adapt quickly and most importantly; it’s giving you added skills and experience for your career.
Also, you’ll generally be paid the hourly rate equivalent to the annual salary for someone performing the role permanently, plus you get your 8% holiday pay on top of your hourly rate. Cultivate have a strong stance on paying well above the living wage and presently temp assignments are offering very competitive hourly rates due to the low employment rate in NZ.
What are the benefits of choosing to temp over permanent employment?
There are many reasons why you should consider temping, and it can be a perfect solution if:
You’ve Recently graduated – Temping can be the easy solution to get your foot in the door of your desired industry. Entry level and/or graduate programs usually require a thorough and strict recruitment process, whereas working through a recruitment agency we can advocate for you, provide a quick fully online recruitment process and most assignments offer flexibility on experience!
In Aotearoa on a visa – Temping is fantastic if you’re on a working holiday visa, as it allows you the chance to work for a set period of time (3-12+ months), to learn and enjoy the kiwi work culture, whilst saving to explore our beautiful country. Also a great way to meet and make new friends.
At a Career crossroad – You’re ready to take the leap into a different career direction, but perhaps a little apprehensive….so temporary work can give you the opportunity to test the change first. A temp assignment gives you the chance to experience it first hand, see if you like it, and if you do, you’ve now got relevant experience on your CV. If you realise it’s not quite right, easy enough to pivot elsewhere once you finish your assignment.
Looking to grow your career – You may be early in your career or have been in the same role for a long time and are struggling to pinpoint what’s next. Temporary work can solve just that. You will continue to earn, grow your skills, networks, and experience, whilst trying out some new things and seeing what fits. Remember job security is just as much about being employable than employed.
It’s a perfect “gap-filler” – Whether you’ve finished a permanent role, made redundant, returned from a holiday, your own business might not be busy full time, temping can offer the chance to earn and learn throughout the year. We work a lot with candidates who are self-employed, avid travelers or career temps.
Holiday work while studying - We work with many students who seek work over the summer or semester breaks, to continue to gain experience. Plus, it provides a ground foundation to grow your CV and skills becoming work ready once graduated.
You need flexibility – If committing to a full time or permanent role may not suit your lifestyle, temping offers the ability to work when you want. We work with a number of career temps who want better balance, enjoying living abroad or like to have periodic work through the year.
Can be easier if you're Neurodivergent – For some people who are neurodivergent working in a temp capacity can make it easier to thrive at work. It can give time off between assignments to decompress, and takes some pressure off the need to feel like you have to invest in company culture or social norms which can be draining.
What is temping like with Cultivate?
Hopefully you’ve got a good understanding of temping and how it can benefit you. Cultivate has a team of temporary specialists, who have been helping thousands of jobseekers into temporary work over many years.
It’s just as important to us that you are successful in the assignment so we’re committed to understanding your needs, explaining the process and logistics, and ensuring you have the support required when on assignment, including advocating for reasonable accommodations for those who are neurodivergent.
On top of this you will have access to EAP services to support you and whanau if needed, alongside our benefits program which offers 10%-50% discounts on household spending, services and attractions across Aotearoa (once eligible).
Check out our Google and Sourcr reviews to see the feedback other temp jobseekers have submitted about their experience with us!
Ready to start temping? Start by checking out our current job listings by searching under temp here and if you haven’t registered with us yet you can do so here. Engaged with us previously? Reach back out to a team member here to talk more about your temp options. Either way, we look forward to connecting shortly.
