Q. Why do I need to contact a staffing agency to apply for a posted job?

A. I’ve been asked that many times. People think they are being hired by a temporary staffing agency and don’t want any part of that. But that’s usually not the situation. More and more companies are using staffing agencies to screen, interview, obtain drug and criminal background checks and more instead of burdening their staff with these tedious tasks. Furthermore, a lot of these checks eliminate candidates which would be a costly investment of time for HR staff. The staffing companies schedule the candidate to work at the target company and the employer evaluates the fit between the firm and the candidate. Only then does a successful candidate get a job offer for permanent employment from the company.
So do not get anxious when told to contact a staffing company when applying for that great job! Getting a paycheck from the staffing company for a few months may simply be the means to an end.