Staffing Companies (List of the worst)

Spherion DOES S(_)CK. I am at an RPO client of theirs. I was identified, screened and selected by the client, not Spherion. The RPO that Spherion has with the client has me working through them. No biggie. I get paid about 10K a month but Spherion is billing the client SEVENTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS for me. They do have some employer contributions to taxes and other expense, but not seven grand a month worth. They are making money hand over fist.

Mypie in Cary, Illinois said: Add to this list Working World in Crystal Lake!

Add these lovely crapholes to your list

Robert Halfass
Atlantis Partners
Remington International
Boylston Group
MacArthur Associates
Stride & Associates
Mergis (Spherion)

grizgirrl in Sacramento, California said: Recruiters are leeches, pure and simple -- users of people, tools for their management. A few recruiters I have met are good, real people, but I can count them on a few fingers.

They want to make you believe that they are professionals and they care about you, but generally they are users.

If you don't use these leeches, then they will go out of business for lack of good applicants. DON'T GIVE THEM YOUR BUSINESS if at all possible.

As long as people use these companies as crutches, they will continue to flourish.

They in turn drive up the cost of doing business by charging exorbitant fees to the client (one to three times your wage). The wages are going up, but you are seeing any of it.

The industry employs the meanest people, the kind of people who would run over a dog if they thought it would get them somewhere faster.

You are just a piece of meat to these leeches, a commodity. It is the rare recruiter who will treat you like a human being.

Let's dump the recruiters like the leeches that they are.

(I won't bother naming any of them, the list is too long).

Wow, you must have had some bad experiences. I have been in staffing for 18 years and am a fanatic about the candidates that come into any my offices being treated with respect and graditude for choosing us. I agree, many staffing companies have started highering low wage people in order to make a higher profit and that is a shame. There are still some goods ones out there. I hope you are able to find one!!! Texas

m Devibear in San Jose, Colorado said: Spherion DOES S(_)CK. I am at an RPO client of theirs. I was identified, screened and selected by the client, not Spherion. The RPO that Spherion has with the client has me working through them. No biggie. I get paid about 10K a month but Spherion is billing the client SEVENTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS for me. They do have some employer contributions to taxes and other expense, but not seven grand a month worth. They are making money hand over fist.

I owned a staffing agency for a little bit, you should learn before before you say they are making sooo much money. Dont forget workers comp, liability, unemployment for state and federal and then any benefits you reecieve. Huge money in those costs

Beth in Canyon Lake, Texas said: Here is a list of Staffing Companies the are a waste of time to register with.

1.APPLEONE--Blacklists you for turning down anything.
2.SPHERION--Ignores you and doesn't keep you informed.
3.ADECCO--In San Antonio--Once they place you and you find you don't like it and leave they will not replace you anywhere.

4.V.I.P in San Antonio--They require a drug test before they place you and if they do place you again you have to retake it for the company. My opinion that it upon placement.

5.RANSTAD--If you have limits on what hours you can work they will not really try to place you.

6.COMSYS--WORST OF ALL recruiter will call you,offer job, you come in register, at the end of registration,recruiter will say she needs to get authorization to send you to the job opening, recruiter doesn't get ahold of the person that day or next, I then decide to call recruiter at the end of week to find out when I can start, recruiter then tells me I am sorry but the company decided to fill position internally, this has happend 2 times with this same staffing company.I called the corporate office to complain they never responded and did nothing to help me, recruiter then emailed me and said she could no longer help me. DON'T EVEN REGISTER WITH THEM MAJOR LET DOWN.

Beth, it sounds like you are pretty much unemployable. You've made the rounds at the agencies and seem to have alienated most of the major ones. Obviously the problem is YOU not them.

Precious in Atlanta, Georgia said: Thanks for your input because I was a school teacher for the last five years but due to me being a victim of a scam ( trusting someone I thought was a friend)has costed me to have a criminal background record in which I've now lost my career and so much more. It's been difficult finding a job.All I'm seeking for is for a company to just give me a chance so I can work and get my life started all over again. Thanks again for your remarks. Remarks such as yours really helps a person that is in the same situation as you and I to realize there is still hope to get a good job.

I can relate to your experience. I have a shoplifting charge from 1991 and can't find work in Atlanta. I was working successfully as a realtor until the economy started to fail. I will keep you posted if any opportunities come my way and please contact me if you find employment at my email address. Good Luck. sdbarkley500@yahoo.com

Beth in Canyon Lake, Texas said: Here is a list of Staffing Companies the are a waste of time to register with.

1.APPLEONE--Blacklists you for turning down anything.
2.SPHERION--Ignores you and doesn't keep you informed.
3.ADECCO--In San Antonio--Once they place you and you find you don't like it and leave they will not replace you anywhere.

4.V.I.P in San Antonio--They require a drug test before they place you and if they do place you again you have to retake it for the company. My opinion that it upon placement.

5.RANSTAD--If you have limits on what hours you can work they will not really try to place you.

6.COMSYS--WORST OF ALL recruiter will call you,offer job, you come in register, at the end of registration,recruiter will say she needs to get authorization to send you to the job opening, recruiter doesn't get ahold of the person that day or next, I then decide to call recruiter at the end of week to find out when I can start, recruiter then tells me I am sorry but the company decided to fill position internally, this has happend 2 times with this same staffing company.I called the corporate office to complain they never responded and did nothing to help me, recruiter then emailed me and said she could no longer help me. DON'T EVEN REGISTER WITH THEM MAJOR LET DOWN.

I can tell you that my sister worked w/Kelly Services, eventually finding employment to her liking & not too great a drive (some of the places where she worked temporarily wanted her to stay, but the distance was prohibitive). She's a "senior" in the work force like myself; I've never even had a call back from any agency, including Manpower, which AARP states is pro-seniors (I have 13+ years experience in the medical field + receptionist/office background).

I was blacklisted by a temp agency when I turned down an assignment. I think this is standard practice now by all temp agencies.

It is also standard practice that they don't tell you when your assignment will end. They simply call you one day at home after 5 pm and tell you not to go back there. And won't say why.

954/Recruiter in Bothell, Washington said: Just a wild guess but I'm thinking Headhunter1 is a Spherion employee?

Spherion is a joke. They & the majority of the staffing/temp firms in America need to be put out of business.

DontBeBlynd in Los Angeles, California said: Beth, it sounds like you are pretty much unemployable. You've made the rounds at the agencies and seem to have alienated most of the major ones. Obviously the problem is YOU not them.

When working for a temp or staffing agency you have to be available, flexible, quick to adapt and have a positive attitude and good work habits. You have burned a lot of bridges and in return may lose out on the opportunity to go back and work with some of the employers you were placed with.

Mary 1Nurse in Louisville, Kentucky said: When working for a temp or staffing agency you have to be available, flexible, quick to adapt and have a positive attitude and good work habits. You have burned a lot of bridges and in return may lose out on the opportunity to go back and work with some of the employers you were placed with.

That's one of the downfalls of staffing agencies. Many of them will do you dirty in the end after you've busted your butt for them & the client. Once they do you wrong by giving false reasons for laying you off or letting you go it not only prevents you from ever working at the client through regular means but it also looks bad on the resume'.

When working for clients I have noticed a biased attitude towards the temp or contractor because he/she isn't one of their own employees. This is wrong but it's the way it is much of the time. Consequently because of that biased attitude it makes it much harder to be treated with respect & dignity on an equal level that the regular employee experiences.

STAY AWAY FROM ACTION STAFFING in Roswell Ga , a recruiter named leslie is very disrespectful. After doing all the paperwork and tests, calling in almost every two weeks for a year , she tells me i will not find a position with them because i don't call in available every single week and that they have more qualified candidates. She was very rude and they should not have wasted my time in the first place.

Spherion is terrible. They have poor customer service and they do not respond to emails.

persistence in seattle, Washington said: Wow! You must of really sucked as a recruiter. Don't take it out on recruiters just because you couldn't get people placed or earn business. With today's job market you may want to see the value in a recruiter. It really depends on the staffing company and the individual you are working with. Are you educated?

No I did not suck as a Recruiter, it just sucked working as a Recruiter for an agency. Especially once I realized all the money that I made for the company and only to be rewarded less that 3% for my efforts. I see no value in any job unless I am the owner, and no it doesn't depend on the staffing agency, you worked for one, you worked for them all. To answer your question of course I am educated, if I weren't I would be just as dumb as you are for even trying to defend some of these dirty agencies. Value in a recruiter my ass, I think you need to change that term to "vulture".

GAMommie in Lawrenceville, Georgia said: LOL! I heard that before as well. I was told that I talked too fast as well, and did not get the job because of it.

Don't worry, it took awhile before employers started responding to my resume as well. (see my prior notes) I know it is very frustrating, just hang in there something will come along soon enough. Also try going directly to the employers' website, many have jobs on there that they do not advertise for. This is how I got hired at a few positions I had in the past.

No luck for almost a year. Everything is going down; we're not even netting a few new jobs.

Kelley in Ocala, Florida said: I had wonderful luck with agencies when I lived in Boston.
Here in FL, very different. I've not yet found an agency I felt was supportive and professional. Mostly they function as "order takers" for their client companies.
My least favorites are Spherion, mentioned quite often here in the forum, Express Personnel and OfficeTeam. All of them are quite similar though, in that you now must apply online, let a computer "grade you" and assign you to an office. The office may not be anywhere near where you actually live. Then, you MIGHT get called to the office for most in-person interviewing and testing. You are not allowed to set up an appointment in advance to come in and meet with a person. Everything starts online. Woe to you if the online testing should malfunction in the middle of your testing....
Lastly you are told "we'll call you if anything comes up that matches your qualifications." None of the agencies discuss your career goals, etc., and try to help you find a position. In larger cities where I've lived, I was the client and they worked diligently to match me to employers. In fact, I got 3 of my best positions, via agencies.
Maybe times have changed, and the personal service I received, is no longer the norm. :(

Right now I'm in Boston, MA and I like none of the agencies around here. They look out for themselves. They don't return calls, post the same positions almost everyday and they all say the same thing "clients are being picky". There is no way around it.

I was just online looking to see if I could find the name of the owner of Action Staffing to let him know about how rude and disrespectful Leslie is. I just went there Thursday to register with them and Lisa, who was very nice and professional, asked me to make some changes to my resume. I didn't hear back from her on Friday, and wanted to know if the changes were what she was looking for so I called at 12:39 and spoke to Leslie who implied she was looking at my resume at the moment. I have been out of work for 15 months and my husband is not paying alimony as order by the court, so to say I am hurting financially is a huge understatement. I decided to call back at 3:00 because I wanted to make sure that if changes needed to be made I could do it before the weekend. Well, Leslie answered again, and scarcastically told me that she was, "very happy that I was so excited about getting a job, but that all three of them were extremely busy and can't be interrupted with phone calls. If anyone is interested in my, they will call me!" My stomach sank. Lisa had my hopes up about a job she thought I might be a good fit for. After being unemployed for 15 months it makes me furious to see people who have jobs and are not doing them well, or in this case are not a good fit for their position. This woman should not be in contact with the public, in my opinion. You have to be compassionate and respectful in her job and she has not shown the capacity for either.

I will continue to try to find the owners name. I believe he should be made aware of how this person represents his business!

HEADHUNTER1 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida said: Why would you reply if someone offered you a job taht you knew going into the details and then you turn it down you are a waste of their time. same things goes for you leaving if you leave with out a standard notice why would we want to replace you somewhere else? Some companies take the time to Place you and not ignore you. Get your facts straight.

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I'm sorry, but I have to respond...Most of the time I don't; I let these types of responses slide because if I tried to help everyone who does this, I would have time for nothing else....so, HEADHUNTER1 in Ft. Lauderdale, FL: I don't understand what you are attempting to state here.

As everyone's grandma should have taught them, if you have nothing nice to say, or even constructive, which is why these message boards were created and put here for our use, please say nothing at all.

And at the very, very least...spell your words correctly; put your sentences together so they actually make sense. After all, if we can't figure out what you're trying to express, what good does it do?

(this system states, right below the REPLY button, "Be Reasonable! Be Polite!")

TO ANYONE CURIOUS ABOUT SPHERION STAFFING PLEASE READ THIS!
I am still employed with Spherion Staffing but I believe everyone has a right to know about what anyone has experienced when working with the company for any future reference. My last week at my assignment was June 20th-24th. Spherion is always quick to notify you via email or phone when you did not submit your timecard. Friday June the 24th I DID NOT recieve an email saying I had not submitted my timecard (as usual when you have not submitted your timecard). Monday June 27th from my school desktop i submitted my timecard at 10:12 a.m. because the timecards needs to be in by 12p.m. on the following Monday.Friday July 1st comes around and I DO NOT get paid. I call my local spherion office in Irving,TX on E. Valley Ranch Parkway to notify them and the receptionist Adrian states he will give me a phone call back and takes my phone number down. I DO NOT hear back from no one. (i explained to Spherion that it is NONE of their business but I do not "make up" stories I only tell realistic stories in my life. On Saturday June 18th my husband & I went out to dinner and he had all of our funds in his wallet. Unfortunantly, he lost his wallet that night & we were never able to locate the wallet. Due to lack of funds I took out a personal loan of $200. I would be paying back $250 in full scheduled July 2nd.) So my problems arises. Spherion never contacted me back Friday July 1st. I have insufficient funds to make a payment on my loan & the loan company overdrafted my card Tuesday July 5th. I stressed all weekend and week long in tears and my husband was unbelievably frustrated telling me I am now in debt due to Spherion and I need to do something. I made my mind up (because I am not a complaning person) to just wait till Friday July 8th to start digging myself out of debt that SPHERION practically put me in. Here it is Friday July 8th and I DO NOT HAVE MY PAY STILL. They are currently working to see what they can do.

David said: Spherion in York, PA is HORRIBLE, They have you come in thinking you are being sent on a position that advertised starting @ $20. an hour, you do all the paperwork and they say they have to get your background check done...
A few days later I'm calling for an update because I haven't heard back and whoa!
They are so sorry that this position has been filled internally but good news they have another for $9.00 an hour, YEAH Right I'm not driving 40 miles each way for nearly minimum wage. I can work at a convenience store and make that.
After stating I will not accept that position they now refuse to try to help with anything else. (They asked and I stated what pay range I was looking for)
When I call to the Recruiter the person who answered asked for my name, I am put on hold only to have them come back and say sorry, she just stepped out... Three times this happened, I finally called and gave a muffled name then she answered.
GAME PLAYERS.
What's the deal, they make money buy placing you so they should know that if you are offered less than what you come for your going to turn it down.
Spherion also uses recruiting Ads which bait people to sign up with them. They actually admitted this stating that its standard practice in this industry.
I totally hate agency positions and I think that contractor jobs which seem to be the thing nowadays have pretty much done away with the old HR Dept. This is one of the biggest mistakes ever.
These people are far worse than a used car salesman.

i agree i have went to the same place in york pa spherion, they suck!

Jobless GA Mom in Lawrenceville, Georgia said: Tell me about it. My resume is very impressive, of course looking at my name and qualifications does not tell what race I am and they seem really excited initially, but after I come in for the interview, it seems there views of me change when they see what color I am. I can tell based upon their body language as well as the questions they ask, down to the tone they use when I interview. It seems that instead of telling me about the job, they look for something to try to disqualify me.

I feel for black America because I see the discrimination that goes down all around me. Its a racist country and all ethnic groups discriminate against blacks and jews. I wish you the best because I know how frustrating and unfair this is.

Vibrant77 in Jersey City, New Jersey said: I feel for black America because I see the discrimination that goes down all around me. Its a racist country and all ethnic groups discriminate against blacks and jews. I wish you the best because I know how frustrating and unfair this is.

Thanks Vibrant for your honest opinion, and kind words. I actually have secured a position, and have been with the company for almost two years. Thanks to affirmative action, they actually was forced to hire minorities because they were extremely underrepresented in the company, so I can't complain. This just shows why these type of programs are still necessary in America today.