American companies are increasingly reaching for temporary hires over permanent staff as economic uncertainty and trade policy volatility make employers reluctant to commit to long-term headcount.
Temporary worker placements rose 9% between February and March and 5.4% year on year, according to data from Bullhorn, a staffing software provider that tracks hiring activity across the recruitment industry.
"Hiring organisations are way more comfortable right now putting in temporary resources, and that shows in all of our data," Lia Taniguchi, Bullhorn's research and insights director, told Yahoo Finance.
Temporary hours also rose in the first quarter, with the increase concentrated in light industrial roles across manufacturing and warehousing.
The trend is echoed in official data.
Government figures show temporary help services employment rose by 4,400 in March to approximately 2.47 million, the highest level since last August, though still well below the March 2022 peak of 3.2 million.
The American Staffing Association said staffing employment has grown continuously since September.
The Federal Reserve's most recent Beige Book, a summary of economic conditions gathered from regional banks, noted increased demand for temporary and contract workers as firms remained cautious about committing to permanent hires.
Staffing platforms report a similar pattern from the employer side, with more clients actively seeking flexible labour arrangements.
"Flexible employees are a real asset to businesses who are dealing with volatility for a variety of reasons," said Sumir Meghani, chief executive of Instawork, an on-demand staffing platform.
Some industry executives see the uptick as a normalisation rather than a structural shift, arguing that temporary staffing had been depressed for an unusually long period.
"In some respects, you could view this almost as just a secular recovery from artificial lows," said Rick Hermanns, chief executive of HireQuest, a staffing franchise operator, while noting that temporary roles frequently serve as a pathway to permanent employment.
The broader picture, however, suggests employers are hedging against an uncertain outlook by keeping their workforce flexible rather than locking in fixed costs at a time when tariff policy, interest rates and consumer demand remain difficult to predict.
The recap
- Temporary placements rose 9% between February and March.
- Temporary help employment reached about 2.47 million in March.
- Employers report increased demand while avoiding permanent hires.