Why temporary roles are on the rise

Temporary jobs are on the rise in New Zealand and their popularity shows no sign of slowing – in fact, one new study has predicted significant growth over the next 12 months.

Conducted by recruitment giant Hays, the survey found that 20 per cent of Kiwi employers expect to increase their use of temporary or contract staff in the next year – far outstripping the eight per cent who anticipate decreasing in this area.

Currently, more than one fifth (21 per cent) of workplaces include temporary staff on a regular or ongoing basis and 46 per cent of employers use temporary staff for help with special projects or to ease heavy workloads.

“We’re seeing temporary and contract employees become the ‘new normal’ across New Zealand workplaces,” says Jason Walker, managing director of Hays New Zealand.

“These highly-skilled professionals work alongside permanent employees as needed, creating a blended workforce that can flex in response to project work or the need for unique expertise.”

However, while employers are increasingly catching on to the benefits of transitory staff, Walker says there’s another catalyst behind the notable growth – AI and none-routine jobs.

“If we look at the skills in demand, it is professionals who can undertake non-routine work who are seeing the highest job growth,” he said. “This is likely to continue, with automation and artificial intelligence already beginning to take over manual and repetitive tasks.”

With technology gradually taking over routine tasks, workers with specialist knowledge will be in high demand and will have the ability to jump from workplace to workplace, delivering their skills and services where needed.

“By their very nature temporary and contract employees possess a high level of relevant knowledge. They are experts in their field and come into a workplace to add value immediately,” he said. “It’s no wonder then that we’re seeing an increase in the use of temporary and contract staff.