Some may be vital to stripped-down offices. Others simply might be invisible. Also, temps are often paid less than similarly educated permanent employees, says Preston Conner, president of the National Association of Part-Time and Temporary Employees. Still, government data show 273,000 temp jobs were lost during the past six months. During slow times, she watches the bay's seals and hopes for a dolphin.
More younger physicians explore temporary work.
Traditionally, locum tenens physicians, who work on a temporary basis, are older doctors. Numbers are hard to come by, but younger physicians are expressing more interest, says Carl Unsicker, a medical director for Vista Staffing Solutions Inc. in Salt Lake City. Younger locums look for time off and experience before settling down. A few, like Cheng-Chieh Chuang, of Providence, R.I., have outside interests and don't plan on permanent work. Instead of text, it consists of a graphic of a watchful, blinking eye.