Working in a permanent full-time role doesn’t always suit every lifestyle.Whether you need flexible hours to fit around the school run or you’re not a fan of the routine 9-5 hours, there are plenty of reasons why you may want to venture into temporary work.Luckily, the care industry can offer these kinds of opportunities in abundance.Generally speaking, you’ll be working shifts on a contracted basis. So if a certain role doesn’t quite work for you, at least you know you can find something fresh in the next few weeks or months.However, when you’re new to the temp industry (especially in care-related jobs), the grass isn’t always greener. So it’s important to identify whether that kind of role is perfectly suited to your personality, requirements and mindset.Here’s everything you need to know before you make an informed decision.
What is temporary work?
When you work on a temporary basis, you are technically employed.However, this is on a contracted basis either directly via the company/organisation or through a recruitment agency.In the care sector, temporary work can range from a matter of days to months, with the rate of pay usually calculated on an hourly basis.Although you may find some positions offer a pro-rata salary which is an annual salary divided by the number of hours that you work every week/month.You may find that working in certain areas of the country will pay you differently as well.For instance, temp care jobs based in London will usually offer slightly more to compensate for the high living costs in the capital city.The best way of making sure that you aren’t left unemployed after finishing a temporary contract is to build relationships with recruiters, such as ourselves.Once your details are registered on a recruiter’s system, a good one will contact you when something appropriate pops up.However, it’s always worth calling them on a regular basis as your contract starts to near the end to remind them that you’re actively looking.
What professions can you temp in?
In theory, a lot of industries will have a requirement for a contract worker. Whether that’s in marketing or hospitality sector.But in terms of the social care industry, some of the most common sectors that require temporary workers are:
- Elderly care
- Mental health
- Learning disabilities
- Palliative care
- Childcare
- Physical disabilities
To find current temporary job openings in these sectors, you should head over to our temp page to register your details today.Once you’re registered, our team will:
- Only put you forward for roles that suit your skills, experience and preferences.
- Provide you with opportunities with some of the UK’s best care companies, including Mencap, Sense and Bupa.
- Organise all mandatory training, CQQ checks, badges and uniforms for you.
It’s also worth checking out job boards like Indeed and Reed as well.
The pros of becoming a temporary care worker
You’ll quickly realise how simple it is to get a new position as a temp.If you’re looking to work flexibly around your lifestyle, this type of contract is absolutely ideal for you.Another plus point is the fact that no day is ever the same with temporary work, as you can easily change roles once the contract is up.Similar to freelancing in other industries, you essentially have more control over your career, instead of being tied up in long-term permanent roles.Temporary work also means that you’ll be taxed, which may not sound great at first, but at least you won’t have to file a tax return every year.So you can combine the flexibility of freelancing with the simplicity of paperwork included in a permanent role. You may even get lucky and be offered paid holiday and benefits with some roles too.If all the HR and payroll is dealt with by the recruitment company, you’ll have the added benefit of having someone proactively working on your behalf to ensure you’re paid on time and your needs are adhered to.This is an added peace of mind, especially when you’re new to the temping world.
The cons of becoming a temporary care worker
On the flip side, one of the biggest challenges with contracting is the uncertainty it can bring jumping from role to role.You have to be relatively proactive in keeping up relationships with recruitment companies.Plus, you must accept that you might not always jump straight back into back-to-back roles.Therefore, this requires a particular mindset to keep yourself motivated again and again.Financially, you’ll soon realise that you will need to put some of your earnings away.It's important to make sure that you have enough in the event that you don’t find another temp job straight away.The only other real con to temping is that you don’t always get the added benefits of permanent care workers.This can include pensions, paid sick pay etc.But as mentioned before, it depends on the company and their contract rules.
Getting started
The main element to consider is just evaluating the pros and cons.Do the pros of a more flexible lifestyle outweigh the slight uncertainty you can get with shorter-term contracts?To help you make a decision, get in touch with our team today. We’ll talk you through the whole process and figure out what is right for you.
