An investment in temporary staffing can result in a high return on investment. By dealing with a reputable temp staffing agency you can experience low risk and high rewards. That being said, if you invest in illegal temp staff you will expose your business to a number of dangerous risks. By taking the time to consider the risks, you will be motivated to exercise proper due diligence when choosing a temp staffing firm.

Damaged Reputation

One of a company’s most valued assets is their good name. Customers want to deal with companies who have a good reputation. With this in mind, imagine for a moment the following scenario: front page news, your company employs illegal workers.

You would no doubt agree that such a scenario would cause irreparable damage to your company’s reputation. Thinking about how your customers, your industry, and the general public will perceive you, should provide more than sufficient motivation to avoid the use of illegal temp staff.

Costly Fines

If the Ministry of Labour were to audit you and found that you were using illegal temp staff, this would results in costly fines. The thousands of dollars in fines would greatly reduce your ROI. It is really not worth the risks.

Disruption of Your Business & Loss of Productivity

By using illegal temp staff you are putting yourself in danger of being raided by Immigration Canada as a result of an investigation. This could greatly disrupt your regular business operations. This disruption would have a negative effect on the bottom line of your business.

This disruption would obviously lead to a loss of productivity. No doubt you can see how the disruption of your business and lost productivity of using illegal workers would result in a low ROI. The risks are just not worth it.

Low Employee Morale

Using illegal temp staff can potentially create an uneasy work environment. If the Temp Agency you are using is employing illegal workers and paying them less than minimum wage, this could adversely affect how your permanent staff perceives your company. This exploitation can have a direct bearing on the bonds of trust. They may start to wonder if they too might be exploited. Such a situation would obviously lower employee morale. It is also good to think about the issues that would result if your employees ever decide to come forward to the media, or the authorities.

Health and Safety Risks

There are two crucial questions that are raised when you use illegal temp staff:

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• What if the illegal temp workers are not properly trained?
• What if the illegal workers do not understand proper safety procedures and instructions?

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The lack of adequate safety training combined with the inability to properly communicate makes illegal temp staff a huge potential health and safety liability. If accidents do occur, you risk facing increased Workplace Safety and Insurance Board premiums and/or NEER surcharges.

Using illegal temp staff exposes your company to unnecessary risks. Using a reputable temp staffing agency will greatly reduce your potential risks.