The use of contingency workers continues to increase in various sectors, including healthcare, due to workforce change. Contingent staffing plays an essential role in strategic planning for healthcare organizations that face an aging customer base requiring extra care and a highly competitive market. It also offers a means for HR in health to acquire skilled healthcare talents. This essay aims at discussing the relevance of contingent workers in healthcare organizations.
The CPR, or Centre for Progressive Reform, expounds on the health concerns and occupational safety that contingent staff face and improving their working conditions. According to Buchbinder and Shanks (2016), the increase in the number of these workers exposes them to health risks that permanent staff may not experience. Low wages, job security, little advancement, and opportunities as other hazards organizations should focus on when implementing strategies.
Defending contingent employees entails clearly defining health and safety responsibilities. The workers’ scheduled tasks must be stated in the organization-host agreement terms and available to them (temporary workers) before they commence their healthcare station duties (Fried & Fottler, 2011). For instance, if the task requires PPE (personal protective equipment), the contract’s statement must include the type of equipment necessary and those provided by the healthcare organization.
Timely payment of wages in time enables contingent staff in healthcare to execute duties diligently and with ease. Organizations should pay them their compensations or insurances on time. According to Buchbinder and Shanks (2016), some employers in healthcare firms fail to compensate for these workers, hiring replacements when they ask for payment or are injured. Hence, the firms have a financial incentive to eliminate safety risks or aid injured contingent laborers returning to duty.
In conclusion, it is essential for staffing agencies and healthcare firms to have an initiative that ensures contingent workers’ safety and health. Organizational management should also institute training programs on health hazards such as pathogens, contaminations, and pollutions. Other operations that focus on the importance of contingent workers may also include initiating and maintaining an accident-prevention scheme. Healthcare establishments must also conduct regular inspections to ensure that contingent members are well equipped with the ability to recognize and deal with any unsafe situations.
References
Buchbinder, S. B., & Shanks, N. H. (2016). Introduction to Health Care Management (3rd edition). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Fried, B., & Fottler, M. (2011). Fundamentals of Human Resources in Healthcare (3rd ed.). Health Administration Press.