For those of you who don’t have Staffing Talk comments delivered directly to your inbox, you might have missed this one from Jayla Monday morning. I borrowed the first line of her comment for this headline. To paraphrase the rest of her piece, she contends it is well known that staffing agencies lie, they post fake job ads, cause poverty and hardship for American workers and all in all simply aren’t a good thing for society. Ouch. 
Jayla’s comments were in reply to this piece I had written back in June, that was in turn a response to this article written by a Chicago news organization called Undocumented Life: Staffing agencies offer a rough option when a regular job is lost.
I felt as if, based upon my firsthand knowledge of the staffing industry, many of the article’s allegations were baseless, or at the very least unsubstantiated. My piece, and a second one, generated quite a few comments and started a good conversation about the ethics and honesty of the staffing industry.
That is not at all a view shared by our most recent commenter Jayla, who starts her comment with some legal clarifications.
I CAN and WILL say anything I want about staffing agencies. As long as I don’t name a specific agency, I am not committing libel or slander.
Okay, now that we have those boundaries established, let’s move on Jayla.
Many staffing agencies lie to their workers and client companies. They also post fake job ads to lure job candidates in to sign on with them, telling them they have a good chance at landing the non-existent job. They get as much information as they can from job applicants. They want all your references from your former employers, but not for the reason you are led to believe. The fact is, they call up these references and do sales pitches to place people at their company. This is what they use your references for – as sales leads! They will keep calling these references and bugging them to death, for months or even years.
It is also well known that staffing agencies lie to workers about a temp assignment, telling them it will pay more than what it does, or telling them it is full time work when its not.
It is also well known that staffing agencies lie to workers about a temp assignment, telling them it will pay more than what it does, or telling them it is full time work when its not.
Some staffing agencies in my city will randomly call up people whose resumes they find on job boards, like monster.com, and threaten them to come in and sign up or else they will “report them to the unemployment commission”. Now, be mindful that not every person who has a resume on monster.com is collecting unemployment benefits, but I suppose these ignorant staffing agencies don’t realize that. They must look really stupid when they try to rat someone out, who isn’t even collecting benefits.
Staffing agencies don’t want temp workers to quit an assignment – even if you give a full two weeks notice. However, if they want to let you go from an assignment, they will do so without giving any notice at all, they just call you after 5 p.m. and tell you not to go back the next day. This puts many people out on the street with no other job to turn to, because they haven’t even been given enough time to round up another temp assignment.
I am employed right now, but I would work at McDonald’s before I would ever temp again. Staffing agencies are not a good thing for America, even if they do employ people. Their unethical maneuvers cause poverty and hardship for many American workers.
Staffing agencies are not a good thing for America, even if they do employ people. Their unethical maneuvers cause poverty and hardship for many American workers.
When I first read Jayla’s comments, my inclination was to respond – and defend – the industry. But then I thought you, our Staffing Talk readers, can probably do a better job of that than me.
So have at it.
As for Jayla, if you are reading this, and would like the opportunity to address thousands of staffing agency owners and employees en masse, and talk about all the wrongs that have been heaped on you by the industry, we will provide that forum. Specifically, we would obviously like to hear examples about staffing companies who have systematically lied to you about assignments, benefits, etc., and how staffing companies cause poverty and hardship for America workers.
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
Dear Jayla,
On behalf of the staffing industry, I apologize to you. And I mean that sincerely. It is obvious that you were not treated in a professional capacity and that is wrong. I assure that where I work, all of our flexible employees are treated with dignity and respect.
Sincerely,
Kimberley
—————————————-
To Everyone Else:
I implore you all to do your research prior to working with any staffing company. Not all companies are created equal. Ask your friends for recommendations. If a staffing company calls you up and threatens to rat you out to the Unemployment Commission, tell them that you will, in turn, report them as well. Believe it or not, the staffing industry is highly regulated.
Some of what Jayla said is true – an assignment may end sooner than originally thought. We do our best to give our employees as much notice as possible, but sometimes we only find out the day before. Sometimes this happens when the employee does a poor job and the client does not want them back the next day.
True – we don’t want you to quit an assignment either, but we get it, stuff happens. We don’t call it “temporary” or “flexible” for nothing!
As to whether or not we post “fake” jobs: I can’t speak for everyone, what I know is that we do not do this. We often have postings up for common positions that we often recruit for, however, we do let our candidates know what our situation is. Is it a waste of your time to get registered and have an interview? Never. If you are a stellar candidate then you will be the first one picked for an assignment and/or you may also be actively marketed to our clients.
And finally, do we use your references as sales leads? Sometimes, maybe. The truth is that I can get better information online that will get me to the decision maker. I don’t need to know who the Office Manager is at ABC Company when I can connect with the CEO instead.
It’s my opinion that poor Jayla got herself involved with the wrong staffing company. I’ve had some bad experiences at restaurants too, but I still go out to eat – I’m just choosier about where.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
10 
0
it’s not my job to police these people who call all day, fill my voicemail, and annoy me.
Like or Dislike:
0 
3
hey Justice Served…are you talking about staffing agencies, job candidates, or girl friends?
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
7 
1
you rock Kimberley…what kind of recruiting do you do?
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Thanks Gregg,
The staffing company that I work with focuses on all types of recruiting: flex, perm, contract, in all disciplines. We’re small, we’re local, and we care.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
I knew someone would represent the staffing industry well with a reply, but I couldn’t have imagined a more sincere and well formed one than what you wrote Kimberley. Hopefully Jayla will find resonance in what you directed to her, and the open letter to everyone else was thoughtful as well. Thanks for reading, and thanks for replying.
Very well said Kimberley, I could not come close to saying it any better if I was given the rest of the week to try. I also feel for you Jayla, it is obvious you’ve had some terrible experiences so your view of the industry seems somewhat justifiable in my opinion.
But just as in any walk of life or industry there is going to be people trying to turn a quick buck, or companies with questionable ethics; especially in this day and age of the internet it makes it that much easier for people to pull a scam. I’d recommend reading any of the many articles out there — often published by the very employment sites you’re likely job searching at — on tips and advice on how to avoid employment scams. As Kimberley said word of mouth is often the best referral, but I’d also recommend just simply typing the company or agency name into a search engine and read a few of the reviews. It’s one way to use the internet to your advantage. I, in fact, use this strategy all the time and not just when I was job searching my self. It is a great way to review online retailers, housing and apartment rental companies, etc.
I will add that many agencies pride themselves in being able to fill most positions in a certain amount of time; in fact many of our clients expect it of us. If there’s a position posted that is no longer available it does not necessarily mean that opportunity never existed, in fact it is probably just as likely the agency already filled that position and it has yet to be taken down from the job search site.
If you are still looking, I hope you find employment soon Jayla. Job searching is hard enough without having to go through road blocks along the way. Just do a little homework during the process and you should be able to weed out almost all the less then reputable agencies. After all, information is the job seekers currency!
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
I am sorry that you were “burned”. I have managed an employment service for 23 years. I can tell you the one word I have always used to describe how we do business. Integrity. I also tell people that we are just like any other business, there are some that are good and some that are bad. Like anything else, you need to do your homework. We pride ourselves in the placements we do. We work hard. It would be impossible for us to place everyone. That will never happen. (although our bottom line would sure look better). We keep our customers. We make sure that we are upfront about the whole process, whether we are talking to a new customer or interviewing a new candidate. We work hard on being professional and honest in all of our business dealings. It works for us, it works for our clients, and it works for a lot of our candidates. Not every business is out to take advantage of you. When you are looking for a job, employment services are just one avenue to take. Take the time to seek out a service that fits with your needs.
Like or Dislike:
1 
0
Just thought I’d chime in as someone who is not in the industry, but I have gone to a temp/staffing agency before and had a good experience. They gave me tips on how to improve my resume, had me type (which wasn’t so good at the time) and asked questions to get a good sense of me. I interviewed at a good company offering decent pay for 9 months minimum while someone went on medical leave. I choose a different job, but had a pleasant experience, the job was real, pay was what they said it would be. Once I told them I found a job, they didn’t harass me one bit. I would definitely go back if in need. Glad you guys exist!
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
5 
0