Best temp agencies in Seattle?
November 3, 2013 3:12 PM Subscribe
What temp agencies in Seattle would be best for a recent-ish college grad with not much in the way of work experience looking to get her foot in the door?
I recently moved to Seattle, WA. My goal now is to find a stable office support position that I can turn into a career. I graduated from college in February 2012 and all my job experience to date has been in academia and food service. I figure working at a temp agency for a while will help me get my foot in the door and give me some much-needed experience. But now I'm stuck. How do I pick a temp agency? How do I tell a good agency from a bad one? If you have a specific agency to recommend or to warn me to stay away from I would love to hear about it!
I recently moved to Seattle, WA. My goal now is to find a stable office support position that I can turn into a career. I graduated from college in February 2012 and all my job experience to date has been in academia and food service. I figure working at a temp agency for a while will help me get my foot in the door and give me some much-needed experience. But now I'm stuck. How do I pick a temp agency? How do I tell a good agency from a bad one? If you have a specific agency to recommend or to warn me to stay away from I would love to hear about it!
Also, don't be afraid to sign up with multiple temp agencies. Theres no kinds of restrictions like that and (hopefully) you get to be more choosy with the jobs you do take if you're being offered multiple.
The one thing to keep in mind while temping is that the temp agency gets about twice your hourly wage for every hour you work. And, if the place you work at would like to hire you, they need to pay a lump sum to be able to offer you that job. This is why a direct-hire or temp-to-perm job is more desirable than a temp-only job.
posted by fontophilic at 5:46 AM on November 4, 2013
The one thing to keep in mind while temping is that the temp agency gets about twice your hourly wage for every hour you work. And, if the place you work at would like to hire you, they need to pay a lump sum to be able to offer you that job. This is why a direct-hire or temp-to-perm job is more desirable than a temp-only job.
posted by fontophilic at 5:46 AM on November 4, 2013
You can also try Office Team, a division of Robert Half International. They are an international company and treated me well in both Minneapolis and Edinburgh. My current office job started as a temp position with Office Team.
As suggested, definitely sign up with mulitple temp agencies. It's a good idea to check in with each agency once per week to let them know you are still available and looking for work.
I liked Office Team because they asked me both what I was willing to do and what I really wanted in an ideal world. Don't be afraid to tell them things like "I would prefer a temp to hire position" or "I don't want to make outbound sales calls". Be specific but flexible-- they may send you out on a few short jobs to test you out before offering you a great position.
Good luck!
posted by stompadour at 9:23 AM on November 4, 2013
As suggested, definitely sign up with mulitple temp agencies. It's a good idea to check in with each agency once per week to let them know you are still available and looking for work.
I liked Office Team because they asked me both what I was willing to do and what I really wanted in an ideal world. Don't be afraid to tell them things like "I would prefer a temp to hire position" or "I don't want to make outbound sales calls". Be specific but flexible-- they may send you out on a few short jobs to test you out before offering you a great position.
Good luck!
posted by stompadour at 9:23 AM on November 4, 2013
I worked with Corestaff when I first arrived in Seattle about 8 years ago. They placed me in the Amazon.com customer service call center for a seasonal holiday assignment.
All in all, it wasn't too bad. It was a definite step up from typical retail or food service work. I never saw any of the temp folks get a permanent offer via a temp role though, but it gave me the time and experience to apply for a more permanent office support job later.
I'll 2nd the advice above about working with more than one agency - that way you have the maximum number of options available to you.
posted by owls at 2:57 PM on November 5, 2013
All in all, it wasn't too bad. It was a definite step up from typical retail or food service work. I never saw any of the temp folks get a permanent offer via a temp role though, but it gave me the time and experience to apply for a more permanent office support job later.
I'll 2nd the advice above about working with more than one agency - that way you have the maximum number of options available to you.
posted by owls at 2:57 PM on November 5, 2013
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posted by baby beluga at 3:33 PM on November 3, 2013