Type of temporary employment

The majority of temporary employees are in term or contract jobs

• Term or contract employees, including employees who work through a temporary help agency, constituted the lion's share of temporary employment in 2003, and represented 6% of all employees (797,000). They were followed by casual workers (437,000) and seasonal employees (392,000), each accounting for 3% of all employees. The'other temporary' employment category picked up the remaining 35,000 (0.3% of all employees).
• While overall temporary employment grew 28% from 1997 to 2003, the greatest growth was in term or contract employment (up 35% or 205,000). The latter growth was noted among all age groups, but youth and older workers had the highest percentage increases.
• More men than women were represented in seasonal employment in 2003, while more women than men were in casual and term or contract employment. Workers aged 25 to 54 years were more likely to have term or contract employment, while youth were found in most types of temporary jobs.

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