Type of Worker

When it’s time to hire a worker, you need to first figure out exactly what kind of help you need.

There are several types of workers for employers to consider, depending on the business needs and the nature of the work being done. Some of the most common types of workers include:

Direct HireDirect Hire
If you are directly hiring an employee, you first will need to decide if you need the employee on a full-time, part-time or short-term basis.

Non-Direct HireNon-Direct Hire
Non-direct, or contingent, workers refer to workers secured through temporary, staffing or professional employer organization (PEO) agencies, under employee leasing arrangements or through other labor contractors. When you make a non-direct hire, your business generally has a contractual arrangement with some type of staffing agency to provide workers for your company.
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InternIntern
Proceed carefully when using unpaid interns.

VolunteerVolunteer
According to California’s Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE), a “volunteer” is generally a person who performs work for public service, religious or humanitarian reasons without promise, expectation or receipt of compensation for that work.

Remote Worker/TelecommuterRemote Worker/Telecommuter
Telecommuting (remote work), is an accepted practice in many workplaces.

Industrial HomeworkerIndustrial Homeworker
California’s Labor Code and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulate certain types of work performed in the home. Though most of these laws target manufacturing, they can be construed broadly enough to include much of the work done using home technology. If industrial homework laws apply, permits are required. You have a number of legal responsibilities as an employer of an industrial homeworker.

Full-time employee: A full-time employee works the number of hours that you designate as "full-time." You can define full-time as 40 or more hours per week or some other amount of hours. You should include the definition of "full-time" in your employee handbook or other policy documents.
Part-time Employee: A part-time employee works less than the number of hours that you designate as full-time. You should include the definition of "part-time" in your employee handbook or other policy documents.
Regular Employee: A regular employee is not employed on a temporary basis, and may be either full-time or part-time, depending on the number of hours they work.
Temporary Employee: Temporary employees are hired for specific assignments of limited duration. They may work full-time or part-time hours during their employment, but the length of their employment is specifically limited. Employers can reserve the right to extend the duration of temporary employment without implying any rights to benefits during the extension.
Casual: Casual workers (on-call, per diem, irregular) perform intermittent service on an as-needed basis. For example, a retail establishment might have an employee who floats between departments as needed, or a preschool might bring in an additional teacher for a week to make sure teacher/child ratios are met during attendance peaks, but the teacher isn't on staff all the time.
Independent contractor: Independent contractors are not employees. In general, an independent contractor works for another entity under a verbal or written contract, usually for a specific length of time corresponding to a particular service, project or task. Independent contractors are responsible for only their own work and how that work is completed and are generally responsible for their own schedule.

Employers may also utilize the services of interns and volunteers, depending on the circumstances.

Depending on your company's needs, you may choose to hire employees directly or indirectly through staffing and temporary agencies.

A variety of legal considerations are associated with different types of workers. Thissection will detail these considerations, including the potential impact in your workforce, benefits, legal protections, joint employer liability for non-direct hires, and the complicated world of independent contractors.

Employers will want to work with legal counsel to implement effective strategies to address legal risk.

Type of Worker

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