Hiring Temporary Staff to Face the Summer Rush
As the temperatures rise and the summer season kicks into full gear, businesses across Europe find themselves facing an annual challenge: managing the summer rush. Whether you're running a bustling café in Paris, a beachfront resort in Croatia, or a retail store in Italy, the influx of tourists and increased customer demand can put a significant strain on your existing staff. One of the most effective solutions to this problem is hiring temporary personnel. On the Your Europe portal, you can find out how to efficiently manage this process by hiring either temporary agency staff or part-time workers.
What to provide to your temporary agency workers
Temporary agency staff are workers hired through a staffing agency to work on a short-term basis for you or your company. These employees are entitled to the same basic working and employment conditions as your permanent staff. This includes pay, duration of working time, overtime, breaks, rest periods, night shifts and holidays. Temporary agency staff should also have the same access to collective facilities, which can include canteens and transport services. Read more about limited derogations on the Your Europe portal and find out under which strict circumstances they are allowed.
Before they start their work, you should inform the temporary agency employees of any possible risks to their health and safety. This includes any special qualifications, skills or medical surveillance needed.
If the staff displays professional skills that you are satisfied with, you may want to keep the workers. This is why you should inform them about any vacancy that arises in your enterprise – this way, you will be able to recruit them directly once their temporary assignment has finished.
Know the rights of your part-time workers
Aside from temporary agency staff, you can also hire part-time workers, as it is explained in more detail on the Your Europe portal. You should offer your part-time employees the same employment conditions guaranteed to full-time workers. If the part-time workers would like to change their working schedules, such as transferring from full-time to part time, or increasing their working hours, you should try to accommodate their requests. An employee cannot be dismissed if they refuse to transfer from part-time to full-time work or vice versa.
Providing your staff with terms of employment
When hiring new staff, you should provide them with their terms of employment in writing. This will ideally be done the day before they start working or on the day their contract begins. This can change depending on the EU country.
Your Europe provides you with a detailed list of items that need to be included in the contract or written working conditions. These are, among others: parties to the employment contract, place of work, start date, expected duration of the job, and more.
Hiring staff from other EU countries
As it is explained on Your Europe, you have a right to hire staff from any EU country. Jobseekers from other EU countries should be treated the same way as applicants from your own country. You can ask these applicants to demonstrate the language skills needed for this position. These, however, should be reasonable for the post.
If hired, workers from other EU countries are entitled to the same working conditions as your country’s nationals. Given that they are EU citizens, they do not need to have a work permit to be able to work in another EU country.
Hiring teenage workers
Another way to help with the summer rush is to employ teenage workers. Remember, only those aged 15 or more can be employed. This age limit may be higher in those EU countries where compulsory full-time schooling continues after this age.
There are some exceptions to this rule. Children under 15 can be employed in cultural, artistic, sports or advertising activities if given prior authorisation by the competent authority. Children between 14 and 15 years old can be employed as part of a work/training scheme or a work-experience scheme.
All the necessary measures to protect the health and safety of young workers should be implemented, and they cannot be employed for work which is beyond their physical or psychological capacity, work that involves exposure to harmful products, or work where the risk of accidents is too high.
Visit the Your Europe portal to find more information about hiring young workers.
Temporary staff as a game-changer for your business
In conclusion, effectively managing the summer rush by hiring temporary personnel can be a game-changer for your business. By ensuring that temporary workers receive the same employment conditions as full-time employees, you can create a supportive and efficient work environment. Additionally, understanding the regulations around hiring teenage workers can help ensure that all staff members are employed safely and legally.
To make sure that you make the most out of these guidelines, visit Your Europe for comprehensive information. Stay informed and prepared, not only to meet the increased demands of the summer season, but also to foster a positive workplace for all employees.