Summer staffing: an employer’s guide to smooth seasonal hiring

For many of us, summer represents a highlight in the yearly calendar: a time for beaches, holidays, and—if we’re lucky—about two weeks of decent weather.

But for hiring managers and employers, summer is often the height of busyness. Challenges range from a slump in available talent, leaps in annual leave requests, a spike in demand in seasonal industries, and a distracted, more unproductive workforce…

So, what steps can you take to ensure your business sails smoothly through the summer waters?

Ride the seasonal wave by hiring seasonal workers

Seasonal employees offer your business a valuable lifeline to boost your flexibility.

While seasonal work isn’t right for every business, opting for seasonal workers helps keep your business fully staffed and productive during peak times for your team.

But before you look to hiring seasonal staff as your solution, it’s important to get the right advice. Many employers fail to master the basics with seasonal talent. They fumble on employment contracts, provide inadequate health & safety instructions, and drive straight into avoidable legal potholes that send candidates packing to the competition.

Don’t be that boss, do your homework, and get the right employment advice for hiring seasonal workers. From contracts and working hours, to pay… it’s important to get it right.

Make sure your current processes are watertight before adding new temporary staff

New hires may be part of the solution, but what about your existing staff? How do you navigate the unique challenges that come with managing your team in the busy summer period?

The summer months are challenging for employers in many ways. For example, workers take more annual leave, often during the busiest periods. Not to mention, employees in the office are often more distracted with summer sporting events—and that’s if they’re not pulling a sickie to watch the match at home!

Even if new hires are taken on, it can be a nightmare managing the additional training and supervision among the heightened demands of summer combined with many employees simply missing in action.

So, besides seasonal hiring, what else can you do to improve team management in summer?

Get your HR operations summer-ready and beat the heat!

Well, thankfully, there are lots of ways to help beat the heat of summertime disruption in your business.

Getting on top of your staff holiday planning with a staff holiday planner lets you calculate staff holiday automatically, saving time and helping flag holiday clashes. No more wasting time trying to fill shifts during your busiest periods!

Shift and rota planners are efficient ways to manage staff shifts, track attendance, and fill open shifts quickly when staff are suspiciously AWOL on match days or during festivals…

Health & safety software can help you stay on top of your training responsibilities during busy hiring periods. With easy on-the-go health & safety training, you can be sure any summer hires are prepped and ready to get to work, taking the stress out of the induction process and promoting a safe workplace.

Getting the right employment advice and contract support can make sure any additional hires during the summer months are inducted without any legal hiccups, protecting your business and saving time and money.

Need more support with your summer staff management?

Learn from our employment law experts on our upcoming May 22nd webcast as they discuss the best ways to overcome HR challenges that heat up for business owners in summer. From managing an influx of leave and holiday requests, to understanding the laws on seasonal workers and employment contracts, we’re giving you everything you need to know to beat the HR heat this challenging summer season. Secure my spot.