8 Pros & Cons Of Accepting Short Term Contracts as a Form of Employment

By Jane Gakaria,

Three months ago Stella Kimotho got a job with an Insurance Company as a sales representative in Kirinyaga County. “It’s under 6 months  contract and although it’s better than staying at home idle and job less, I feel I should have educated myself on what being employed on a contract especially a short one is all about,” she writes in an email

Employers will agree that taking on employees on short term basis lets employers bring in people with special skills or to employ extra labour when it is needed. A short term contract allows both the employee and employer to be flexible in their commitment since both will benefit. The employer gets access to specialized skills to meet a particular need while the employee can gain broader work experience.

So what then are the pro and cons of short term contracts?

Speaking to Mr. Peter Njunge, an Assistant Manager at Housing Finance, he tells me that before we get to the pros and cons, we must first understand the reasons as to why such jobs exist, which are;

One, for experimentation purposes. “Some companies have certain job gaps that may be new to the company or industry hence need to hire a short term employee to see whether the vacancy is practical and sustainable in the long run.”

Two, to help employers deal with the extra workload. “More so if the company is quite small and understaffed and wishes to take on a big project(s).” Three, replacement purposes. “For example if an employee is unable to come to work may be because they are on maternity leave or absent due to some kind of illness, short term contracts prove effective.”

Four, trial and error basis. There are a lot of companies who put new employees or even interns to work first on short term basis. “Most will use this as the probation period to gauge just how ‘worthy’ the employee is of the job.” Below are some of the pros and cons of such job contracts.

Pros
One, they are in abundance and lucrative: short term contracts are more in the job market as compared to long term ones. Hence job seekers who desire such jobs have the option of being picky about the best jobs they want. Furthermore, there are certain short term jobs that pay quite well in one go as compared to long term ones, for example fashion models hired to do a 3 month beauty campaign can earn millions of shillings.

Two, career progression: more so for interns. They get to work for different companies and get to experience the work environment. Should they not like the said company, they can easily move on once they’ve gotten the needed work experience and the contract has expired. In the case of regular employees, short term contracts don’t have a long ‘career ladder’ to climb unlike permanent jobs and one can get varied experience from different places all the while making some extra money.

Three, lots of freedom: unlike permanent jobs where one can feel trapped, job seekers on this corner of the earth are free to move from one job to another. Add to that the fact that if one is unhappy with a particular short term job, they know they don’t have to ‘suffer’ for long and they will easily move on to the next better opportunity.

Four, travel: if you are the kind of person who likes to travel a lot, then short term contract jobs may come in handy for you. One needn’t be tied down and can have the option of taking up contracts in different parts of the country or even go overseas if the mood strikes them. Rather than being stuck in one place for years, they get to have the ‘fun’ option of experiencing new places and challenges.

Cons

One, limiting work experience: if an employee is hired on a short term basis with a very specific job purpose contract, it might be difficult for them to get a varied experience. “The difficulty comes in when the involved employee may want to do more tasks so as to learn more on the job, and if you have a ‘rigid’ employer, it might create problems as it may be seen as an infringement of the contract.”

Two, instability: short term contracts can be great if the work is coming along on a regular basis but what happens when they become scarce? Or worse still, what if you land the job only to have an unscrupulous employer terminate your contract early and dismiss you?

Three, difficult legislation: “moving from job to job can be great but one will always be constantly forced to always update or change any legal documents, based on their current job, quite regularly.” For example your NHIF & NSSF details will always constantly need to be changed, failure to which you can easily get in trouble with the law.

Four, lack of the ‘full package’ benefits: certain short term contracts don’t give the employee the same benefits as it would to permanent workers. These could include things like leave, vacations or even bonuses.

In conclusion, regardless of the type of job you have, be it long term or short, make the most of it. Learn all that you can and gain the relevant skill and experience to make you a better wholesome employee.

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