How to plan, hire, schedule and manage temporary, seasonal, on-call and contract workers alongside your core team, and the legal risks to watch.
| Type | Who employs them | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Agency temps | The staffing agency, often with your business as a possible joint employer | Peaks, absences, short projects |
| Seasonal employees | Your business | Holiday retail, summer hospitality, harvest |
| On-call or per-diem staff | Your business | Fill-in shifts in healthcare, events, security |
| Independent contractors | Nobody; they run their own business | Specialized or project work they control |
| Gig or platform workers | Depends on the platform and the law | Delivery, short tasks |
The labels matter less than the facts. A seasonal hire or on-call worker on your payroll is your employee with full wage and hour rights. A worker you call an independent contractor may legally be an employee. See seasonal employee, temporary employee and blended workforce.
They make less sense for work that is ongoing, central to your business and directed by your managers every day. That pattern looks like regular employment, and it is usually cheaper and more stable to hire.
Start from data. Look at last year’s hours by week and location, upcoming events and your current team’s availability. The gap between the hours you need and the hours your core team can cover is your contingent need. Our workforce planning guide and the staffing calculator walk through it.
Misclassifying an employee as an independent contractor can lead to back wages, unpaid overtime, back taxes, penalties and benefits claims. Federal agencies and courts look at the economic reality of the relationship: who controls the work, whether the worker has a real opportunity for profit or loss, whether they invest in their own business, how permanent the relationship is and whether the work is integral to your business. Several states use a stricter “ABC test.” If you direct when, where and how someone works, treat them as an employee. Read independent contractor vs employee before engaging contractors.
With agency temps, the agency is usually the employer of record and runs payroll, but your business may share responsibility as a joint employer for some legal obligations, especially workplace safety and, in some situations, wage and hour compliance. Put responsibilities in writing:
| Topic | Who is responsible |
|---|---|
| Payroll, taxes and workers’ compensation | Usually the agency; confirm in writing |
| Site-specific safety training and PPE | Usually your business; OSHA expects both to protect temporary workers |
| Timekeeping and approval of hours | Agree who records hours and who approves them |
| Overtime | Agree how overtime is authorized and billed |
| Discipline and removal from assignment | Agree the process and who communicates |
| Conversion to permanent hire | Check any conversion fees |
Short assignments still need good onboarding. A temp who does not know the safety rules or where to clock in is a risk on the first day. Prepare a short version of your onboarding:
See how to onboard seasonal employees for a fuller checklist.
Contingent workers should fit into the same schedule as everyone else, so managers can see total coverage and labor cost in one place. Give core employees first choice of preferred shifts where that is your policy, fill the rest with seasonal, on-call or agency staff, and keep an on-call list for last-minute gaps. Watch hours closely: seasonal and on-call employees on your payroll earn overtime like anyone else, and some cities’ scheduling laws cover part-time and temporary staff.
Track every contingent worker’s hours accurately, even if an agency pays them. Agency invoices are based on hours, and disputes are common when nobody recorded them. Compare the cost of each option per productive hour: agency bill rate, seasonal wage plus burden and training time, or overtime for core staff. Our overtime vs new hire calculator helps with the comparison.
The best seasonal and on-call workers are valuable because they already know your business. Treat them as part of the team: include them in announcements, recognize good work and invite them back early for the next season. A returning seasonal worker needs far less training than a new one.
EZTime lets you add seasonal, on-call and temporary staff to the same schedule as your core team, post open shifts, and record hours from a phone, kiosk or NFC tag. Hours can be tagged by job or client, which makes agency invoices and project costs easy to check.
Someone who works for a business without being a permanent employee on its regular payroll, such as an agency temp, seasonal hire, on-call worker or independent contractor.
Yes, if they are non-exempt employees. Seasonal status does not change wage and hour rights.
Yes, in some situations. Host employers share responsibility for safety and may be joint employers for other obligations.
Look at the economic reality of the relationship, including control, investment, profit or loss and permanence. Some states use a stricter test.
It is a good idea to record their hours yourself, even if the agency runs payroll, to check invoices and manage coverage.
Core, seasonal and on-call staff on the same EZTime schedule. There is a $20 monthly minimum; above that, plans start at $2 per employee.