Anselmini said in her written response to the latest audit that new procedures are being implemented that will finally address the problem. Anselmini said in an interview that individual state agencies can hire their own temps without going through the Personnel Department. As a result, she said, the department only recently has put systems in place to identify when a worker was approaching 944 hours. And it still can't tell whether the worker is a lawyer or a janitor, making it difficult to judge whether the temp provides a crucial service and should be moved to a full-time job, Anselmini said. So, union complaints about the misuse of permanent temps may be on target, she said.
Critics say that's nonsense.
Most of the people I know would like a full-time job if they could get it. Out of 75 temps who responded to a questionnaire distributed this year by the Unemployment Coalition of North Jersey, not one said they took the job for its flexibility. Most saw it as a stopgap while they hunted for a permanent job, the coalition said. None had insurance or other benefits through their employers. Debra Turner, director of corporate human resources at Corning in Teterboro, said the company's temps are paid about the same as staff employees but don't receive company benefits, which make up about 25 percent to 40 percent of compensation costs.