I once worked in a factory with a gentleman who was classified as a temporary worker after two and a half years of employment for the company. At the same factory I was classified as temporary for nine months. At another factory I witnessed employees, who had been laid off only months earlier, being brought back as temporary workers. These examples are typical in manufacturing as well as many other industries around the world. Even colleges and universities have not been immune to the plague of temporary workers. The trend toward greater numbers of temporary workers has accelerated immensely over the past two decades, leaving the average worker to suffer the blows of the corporate titans. The enormity of this problem is demonstrated on the 2030 Center website, which states, "In a hallmark sign of change in what public figures call the "new economy," Manpower Inc., a temporary agency, is now the nation's largest employer." Along with these agencies, corporations benefit enormously from these employment procedures. The employees, suffering great economic loss, pay the price for these companies" rewards. These temporary workers need to review their own actions if they would like to place blame on their employment conditions. If these conditions have caused so much angst in workers, why has this trend developed so rapidly?.
In the 1980's, the United States was in the midst of a recession, as it is today. During this period, corporations were not immune to the bankrupting effects of a negative economy. In order to alleviate some of this burden, many corporations looked toward temporary agencies for a solution. By using these agencies, companies could avoid paying for the insurance and retirement incentives offered to full time workers. Employees of the temporary agencies were also much more likely to accept lower wages than their full time counterparts. With these economic benefits in mind, who can blame management for climbing aboard the temporary rescue vessels? As the economy recovered, however, corporations failed to abandon the temporary agencies.