Seasonal Employees 5 Things to consider when hiring for the wint (Mount Laurel, NJ)

Seasonal Employees 5 Things to consider when hiring for the wint

Using Time Clock Software when Recording your Winter Hires You may have hired so many people before that you can t even count. You could probably write a manual on hiring just from tapping into your own brain But all the sudden you are asked to hire a few new people but only for the holidays. This is a whole new ball game. Using a time clock software to track these employees can be a great resource. Hiring seasonal employees is different than hiring a standard year round employee. It is easier in some ways but more difficult in others. There is also the difference between a business that is only open seasonally and one that is open year round but needs extra help around the holidays. The bottom line is that if you have never hired someone for a temporary or seasonal position before there are definitely a few things to consider before jumping into it. Take these five tips into consideration this holiday season if you want to avoid a lot of the common issues that employers tend to have with temporary workers. 1. Be Straight with New Hires Employers want to be sure that they are telling all seasonal hires in writing when their seasonal employment is expected to end. Most seasonal employment is intended to be at will and employers also must be sure to communicate that to seasonal hires clearly and in writing. It is always wise to consult with legal counsel regarding the terminology that should be used in offer letters or other communications to new hires to avoid giving the impression that at-will employees whether seasonal or non-seasonal are permanent or are employed for a definite term. 2. Training The on-boarding process for seasonal employees is just as important and arguably more important than the on-boarding process for year-round employees. Consider the examples that follow. The holiday season is a busy time which means managers have fewer opportunities to provide on-the-job training to seasonal workers and to integrate them into the company s culture. Holiday shoppers tend to be stressed and impatient. So seasonal employees need to be able to hit the ground running and provide quality customer service from the start of their employment even if they lack prior experience working for a particular employer. The same rules of conduct apply to seasonal workers as to non-seasonal workers so seasonal workers need to be trained immediately as to what these rules are.Non-seasonal workers also should be trained regarding the appropriate treatment of seasonal workers. Some employers choose to apply a more rigid standard of attendance to seasonal workers than they apply to non-seasonal workers. Employers might do this because of the intended short-term nature of the relationship and the added importance of having people at work and on time for the holiday retail rush. Employers that adopt a more rigid seasonal attendance policy should emphasize the policy during the on-boarding process and communicate it in writing to seasonal hires. Some workers return to the same employer every holiday season and because of their prior experience may think that they already know all of the employer s policies and procedures. So if any policies or procedures have changed since the last holiday season it will be important to make these repeat seasonal workers aware of the changes. 3. Have a Different Interview Process You may be used to a certain style of interviews especially if you ve done it many time. The problem is that interviewing people who may only work a few weeks or months at a time is completely different. You may ask about goals and objectives if hiring for a long term position but when hiring for a winter job you just want to know if they can do the job. Questions should be geared more towards how the candidate would handle difficult specific situations. With time being of the essence you wouldn t want to bring on someone who needs to be told twice how to do a job regardless of what the job is.To maximize time you may want to consider phone interviews. While they can never really substitute for the real thing (you do have to wear clothes to a real interview as opposed to a phone one) they are a serious time saver. It will also help weed out applicants who may not have the experience or desire to complete the tasks required for your part time gig. 4. Know the Law Before deciding how you re going to hire people for the holiday season make sure you are familiar with the law. There are differences between employees and Independent Contractors (you can find out more about that here) but you should know if they are going to be full time or part time. If they are a temporary employee this is for a set period of time whereas seasonal employees come back to work on a recurring basis. 5. Know who to hire With the cost of training and advertising to find seasonal employees it is important to know who to hire. With your expedited interview process you should be hiring people who are already up to the task and know what to expect. These new hires need to be able to accomplish the tasks you need done. iStaffwise Manages all your workplace HR in one place and can help you manage those winter employees. Call us at 609-832-0060 to speak to a representative about how to get started.