Temporary Employment on Your Résumé
Posted August 8th, 2011
Today, temporary employment is being used more than ever, and for more types of jobs than ever before. Because of the volatility of the economy, companies are turning to contingent labor, and for some companies temporary labor has become a significant part of their workforce.
For workers, temporary labor can provide flexibility in location and hours, provide employment after a layoff or between jobs, and help gain job experience.
But if you have been a temporary worker and are now applying for a full-time job, how should you portray your contingent work experience on your résumé?
The first thing to think about is whether you really need to list your contingent work experience. If you only worked as a temporary worker for a few weeks or months, it may not even serve any purpose to include it. Also, your résumé generally highlights your most recent work experience, as well as the work you have done that most directly relates to the job for which you’re applying. If your temporary work does not fall in either of those categories, it might be best to just leave it out.
If you do include your temporary experience, be sure to include the staffing agency you worked for as well as the client company (or companies) at which you worked.
If you have had several temporary work stints with one staffing agency, it would be best to combine those experiences into one item on your résumé. Here again, list the staffing agency as your employer. By combining your work periods, it will help to show some continuity in your work history.
And, as with any work experience you list on your résumé, focus on your accomplishments, what you did and what you achieved. Focusing on accomplishments, even with temporary assignments, will have a much greater – and positive – impact on a prospective employer.
Remember the basics about putting together good résumés: keep them short, no more than one page unless you are someone with many years of experience, use active verbs in short punchy phrases to emphasize your achievements, try to tailor the résumé to the job to which you’re applying, check your spelling and grammar, use good quality paper, and don’t overuse gimmicks.
Need help with your résumé? Bayside Solutions can work with you to craft a document that will help our Bay Area client companies stand up and notice! Contact us today!
