Hiring contingent talent is a rising trend as leading companies increasingly rely on this workforce during economic uncertainty. Companies want a more flexible talent investment but simultaneously struggle with a shortage of specialized skills. As a result, the competition to attract contingent talent is becoming more intense.

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The United States alone has approximately 76 million independent workers, a figure that is projected to increase in the coming years. Among those workers, contingent employees have become a strategic pillar at manufacturing, logistics, automotive, and many other industries across the globe.

Companies at any point in the supply chain can leverage contingent workers as a strategic advantage, but they need to differentiate themselves so that their brand as an employer is uniquely attractive to the contingent workforce. Otherwise, they will lose top contingent talent to competitors inside and outside their industries. HR and operations leaders must take time to understand these workers’ preferences, invest in organizational changes, and build a sustainable pipeline of contingent talent for their companies to get ahead.

how will you adapt your recruitment strategy?

It’s time to rewrite your employee value proposition (EVP) to incorporate the preferences of temporary workers. This article demonstrates how HR and operations leaders in industries such as manufacturing and logistics can stand out to this community of talented individuals, each seeking contingent roles to fulfill their unique goals.

new developments in the contingent labor market

Economic downturn, regional instability and supply-chain disruptions have forced a realignment of the global workforce, driving workers from failing companies and shrinking industries to new roles and alternative types of work. Meanwhile, companies in growth sectors are optimizing the ways in which they attract and acquire new talent.

Companies of all sizes are increasing their use of contingent talent significantly as a result. Still, identifying and acquiring the right talent remains one of the biggest challenges in manufacturing and related industries, often driven by negative worker perceptions. In that regard, your HR and operations recruitment teams are driving your company’s success, based on their leaders’ ability to adapt to a more fluid global workforce and economy.

This is especially important for larger manufacturing, logistics, and automotive companies, which need temporary employees to manage production fluctuations. Contingent talent is a highly effective way to address growing skills deficiencies, improve costs, and quickly access specialized talent in these and other related industries as well.

Despite skills shortages and growing competition over temporary staff, you too can benefit from this growing trend among workers—so long as you have their own unique goals in mind when you craft your value proposition to recruit them.

what do contingent workers want?

Generally, contingent workers seek the same personal benefits permanent employees seek in a job. A common sense-approach that prioritizes the well-being of contingent workers is essential, in that sense.

But contingent work is often more than a means to an end for these workers. There are dozens of career-oriented reasons that might drive workers to choose contingent roles. You must determine how their motivations align with your own company goals.

For example, contingent work offers job continuity when a person has been laid off. Workers can gain hands-on experience with emerging digital tools as manufacturers and similar companies digitally transform. Increasingly, contingent roles also align with apprenticeships as well.

You should start by assessing the impact your EVP may have on attracting contingent workers to your company. Like all workers, contingent team members want to feel valued and integrated into the team, even though their roles differ from those of permanent staff.

In manufacturing, contingent workers often switch jobs when offered only a small raise. But a higher hourly rate sometimes isn’t the most attractive “benefit” for contingent workers. Training opportunities, family support, and even a pleasant work atmosphere are in demand but are not always available to workers in contingent roles. Clearly, these benefits can have a uniquely strong appeal to these candidates as a result.

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reinforce your EVP with what matters most to contingent talent

You should therefore identify what is most valuable to contingent workers in the roles for which you need them. Start by asking essential questions about these workers, such as:

  • are the “benefits” we offer attractive options for contingent workers in our industry?
  • which is desirable: competitive pay, career development, or opportunities for permanent work?
  • when recruiting, what is our company mission’s impact on our contingent talent “brand”?
  • how can we improve our “brand” and cultivate our own community of contingent workers?

The bottom line: if contingent workers are an essential part of your business, you shouldn’t regard them as only temporary labor. Adopting a stronger EVP for contingent talent and developing a more nuanced approach to recruitment can help.

5 things you can do to start attracting contingent talent

Let’s take a closer look at the most important factors for attracting contingent talent. We’ll examine how these factors influence your EVP and what you can do to act upon them. In time, you can build a more resilient contingent recruitment model, even as individual contingent workers arrive into and depart from your ranks.

5 things you can do to start attracting contingent talent
5 things you can do to start attracting contingent talent

1. provide opportunities for career growth

Competitive wages are the most direct career benefit you can offer contingent workers. But wages are not the only competitive factor in this area. Skills development and advancement opportunities within your ranks are distinguishing factors that can attract valuable talent over your competitors.

For example, popular education programs often don’t provide workers with industry skills. This is especially true in manufacturing, logistics, and automotive industries, where specialized skills are required. Your company can both prepare talent for the roles for which you employ them and provide them with practical training that will help them build their careers long term.

As these and other industries transform—with digitization, for example—upskilling and reskilling your permanent workers is critical. Related training can become more than an investment in your internal teams. Providing these opportunities to contingent workers fulfills your internal requirements while building a more attractive contingent brand.

2. offer flexible hours

Already, 41% of the respondents in the 2024 Randstad Workmonitor study want flexible working hours to accommodate work-life balance, and 37% claim they would consider quitting if they were asked to spend more time at the office. Workers who care for loved ones, who are pursuing higher education, or who work multiple jobs all can benefit from increased flexibility in the workplace.

3. prioritize health and wellness

While companies commonly provide health and wellness benefits to permanent employees, contingent workers often miss out. However, a recent Deloitte survey reveals that 60% of employees would consider switching jobs for better wellbeing support, emphasizing the need for comprehensive wellness programs for contingent talent as well.

Reflecting this need, when Google noticed that gig workers were becoming disgruntled due to lack of access to benefits enjoyed by full-time employees, the company responded by requiring its HR partners to provide healthcare and other benefits to their contingent workers. Offering some degree of health benefits can therefore distinguish you from competitors.

4. accommodate family needs

Just like permanent employees, contingent workers are spouses, parents, and caregivers with unique family requirements. Therefore, adopting a family-friendly approach can be a compelling employee value proposition.

Providing greater flexibility at the workplace—adjusting their at-work hours, for example, or allowing workers to answer their mobile phones on the job—can help. Upon building a broader culture of understanding within your company, you can advertise those benefits to the contingent workforce community.

5. create a pleasant work atmosphere

Randstad's research indicates that a pleasant work atmosphere is a key driver for many employees, with women valuing it more than men. In addition, older generations place more importance on this factor than younger ones. Employers can promote this aspect alongside other benefits provided to contingent workers.

 

This is an updated version of an article originally published on 24 February 2021. 

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Download checklist for attracting contingent talent

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about the author
sandra ebbers
sandra ebbers

sandra ebbers

vp global concept inhouse & large accounts

Sandra is responsible for the implementation of the inhouse concept worldwide. This business concept adds value to large organizations by optimizing their workforce and guiding flex workers in a cost-efficient way of working.

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