Buffalo’s Temp Agencies: Landscape Analysis
Donald J. Herbert Jr.
SUNY Buffalo Law School
A. What Temp Agencies are Operating in Buffalo?
There is definitely no shortage of temp agencies operating in the Buffalo area. A quick look at the yellow pages or performing a Google search will confirm this. Another good source to find lists of local temp agencies is from local, state, and federal government websites.[1] However, Coming up with a comprehensive list of agencies can be difficult for several reasons (See Appendix A). First, many temp agencies offer multiple services or use industry jargon in an effort to avoid the term “temp agency, ” instead one finds, in addition to, temporary positions “temp-to-hire,” “temp-to-perm,” “no fee direct placement jobs,” “supplemental staffing solutions, ” and “flexible’ employment.” Second, the landscape is constantly changing. A few of the larger national agencies have been around for decades, but many local companies either go out of business, or they change names, ownership, specializations, and services often enough that keeping up-to-date with all of the players in the field is difficult. My goal is to provide a snapshot of the local temp economy by profiling 3 agencies, one national and two local, focusing on what they offer and what if any litigation or enforcement actions they may have been subjected to.
Labor Ready:
“We'll supply the elbow grease to help your business grow.”
- From Labor Ready corporate website[2]
Labor Ready is a multinational organization that has more than 130,000 customers throughout the United States and Canada.[3] They are a publicly traded organization operating under a parent company, TrueBlue, Inc., and are headquartered in Tacoma, Washington.[4] They market themselves as being a leader in ‘blue-collar staffing,[5]” that has “perfected the on-demand business model for temporary help.[6]” According to their website, they specialize “in tough-to-fill, high-turnover positions[7]” and every year they dispatch “approximately 350,000 Temporary Associates to jobs in construction, manufacturing, hospitality, events, restoration, auto services, logistics and warehousing, retail support, waste and recycling and more.[8]”
According to the Labor Ready website “Temporary Associates are available 24/7 and will arrive with the appropriate personal protective equipment, completed behavioral screening and meet any background and drug test requirements you have requested.” The website does not mention whether there is any cost to the employee for the background check or screening and does not say if proper PPE or transportation is provided.
Labor Ready has two branch offices in Western New York. One is Located at 3064 Bailey Avenue near Kensington Ave in the City of Buffalo. The other is located at 1587 Kenmore Avenue near Elmwood Avenue in the Village of Kenmore. “Employees that work for Labor Ready receive a paycheck or a voucher for cash after the end of each work day[9]. “The company's slogans are “Work Today, Paid Today” and “Work Today, Cash Today.[10]”
In 2005, the New York State Department of Labor initiated proceedings against Labor Ready Inc. for impermissibly deducting fees from employees who opted to be paid by cash vouchers instead of by check. At the time Labor Ready had 7,000 customers in New York State and employed approximately 18,000 unskilled and semiskilled laborers whose average salary was $6.41 per hour.[11]” Many workers choose this option either because they did not have bank accounts or live in rooming facilities that charge by the day. Workers who opted for a cash voucher could only redeem it at cash dispensing machines (CDM) located at Labor Ready branches. The value of the voucher was an employee’s net wage minus a transaction fee. The transaction fee was one dollar plus any remaining change. “If, for example, a worker's after-tax wages were $44.85, the voucher would be for $43, and upon accessing the CDM, the worker would receive $43 in cash.[12]” The NYDOL first looked into the potential illegality of this practice in 1999, at that time they were also looking into the legality of wage deductions for transportation and equipment costs.[13] During the investigation the issue of transportation and equipment costs was settled and Labor Ready agreed to pay over $38,000 in restitution.[14] However, the issue of CDM fees remained unresolved. An initial administrative review by the NYS Industrial Board of Appeals (IBA) found that the transaction fees were in compliance with state labor laws. The IBA reasoned that the transaction fee was not a wage deduction but a separate, voluntary transaction. A review by the NYS Appellate Division, 3rd Department reversed the board’s determination stating, “[T]he deduction and the payment of wages are inseparably connected and interrelated…. [And the] direct deduction of a fee for the service of providing cash wages is a violation of Labor Law § 193.[15]” The NY Court of Appeals subsequently upheld the 3rd Department’s decision.
In upholding the appellate courts decision the Court of Appeals narrowly construed language in § 193 that restricts the types of wage deductions employers may make. The statute enumerates several permissible deductions but contains language that would allow further types of “similar’ deductions if they are “for the benefit of the employee.” The only benefit to the employee that the court could recognize for the transaction fee was one of convenience, which they concluded was “not a ‘benefit’ covered by the statute.[16]”
In late 2013 Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a law that significantly increased the type of deductions New York employers may take from an employee’s wages in both number and scope.[17] In addition to the new categories of permissible deductions, the statute still contains language allowing for additional types of deductions if they are “similar” to others listed in that statute and are “for the benefit of the employee.” Although it is unlikely that the Court of Appeals will reinterpret ‘convenience’ to be a “benefit” similar to others covered by the statute in light of the expanded list, the question, however, remains unresolved by the courts. The broader language in the statute leaves open the possibility that employers may find new ways to exploit employees by making wage deductions if they can argue that the deduction benefits an employee and is of a type similar to others listed in the statute.
EGW Personnel Staffing
"Good People - Good Jobs©"
- Corporate Motto[18]
EGW is a local staffing agency that was founded in 1969 by Eugene G. Wach. EGW is still owned and operated by members of the Wach family. The Wach’s have four sons that have all been involved in the business at one time or another. Currently his son Thomas Wach serves as the president/chief executive officer and his brother Jeffery Wach is the chief operating officer. EGW provides temporary staffing, temp-to-hire, direct hire, and contract staffing services in the hospitality, technical, professional, administrative, industrial, and skilled trades fields.[19] Over the years EGW’s client list included companies like Bethlehem Steel, Bell Aerospace, Donner-Hanna Coke, National Gypsum, and Buffalo Forge.[20] More recent clients include Delphi Thermal in Lockport and the commercial bakery Culinary Art’s Specialties Inc. in Cheektowaga.[21] EGW has a full-time staff of 16 employees.[22] EGW’s “weekly payroll for contract employees is typically between 300 and 400, although there have been times when as many as 1,500 have been on the firm’s payroll.”[23]
EGW is headquartered in the City of Buffalo and their corporate office is located at 1700 Clinton Street near Bailey Avenue. However, they do have satellite offices on Main Street in Arcade, NY and at 320 North Washington Street in Rochester. The Corporate website does not specify any terms or conditions of employment or fees for their services. However they do say that they offer “Good pay” and mention the possibility to “[e]arn top pay rates in your chosen field.[24] Their hiring process involves an initial application that can be completed online, followed by an interview, all candidates are tested and assessments are based on individual skill sets and interests, also, reference and background checks are conducted, as well as, a drug screening, which EGW conducts in their offices.[25]
SPS Temporaries Inc.
SPS is a locally owned and operated temporary, temp-to-hire, and direct hire staffing service. It was founded in 1992 and specializes in clerical and industrial work. Sample placements include clerks, administrative assistants, telemarketers, assemblers, forklift operators, and general laborers to name a few. The SPS corporate office is located at 135 Delaware Avenue in Buffalo and operates three placement and recruiting offices in Buffalo, Tonawanda, and West Seneca respectively. Applicants are evaluated based on their performance on various tests administered by SPS. Clerical applicants are tested on “PC program skills, office automation, procedure and technique.”[26] SPS evaluates industrial applicants by their competence with “inventory, arithmetic and comprehensive skills.”[27] Once hired employees are required to check-in one hour before any scheduled start time by contacting an SPS branch office.[28] SPS offers potential employers a four-hour guarantee, meaning if an employer finds that a SPS employee is performing unsatisfactorily they should notify SPS and a replacement will be arranged for free.[29]
The list of currently available placements on the SPS website ranges from an $8 an hour job making cardboard boxes on one end of the spectrum. That job is described as fast paced and involves standing for 8 hours. There is no education requirement, but applicants are required to own steel toe boots and have their own transportation, they note that these positions are not accessible by bus.[30] On the other end of the spectrum is a machinist’s position that has the potential to pay up to $25 an hour. That position only requires a High school diploma or equivalent education, but requires 5 to 7 years of experience working in a machine shop.[31]
SPS Temporaries made headlines in 2005 when they and two of their clients, Jamestown Container and Whiting Door Manufacturing Corporation, settled a class action suit initiated by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).[32] The EEOC brought the suit “under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title I of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act to correct unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, sex, national origin, disability and age.[33]” In their complaint the EEOC alleged that SPS discriminated against people with potential disabilities by failing to hire or refer them based on information elicited in a pre-employment medical questionnaire. The compliant further alleges that SPS terminated an employee because she was pregnant, terminated another employee because she questioned the agency’s discriminatory practices, they complied with discriminatory hiring requests by clients, and altered and destroyed evidence during the EEOC’s investigation.[34] As part of the settlement the defendants agreed to pay up to $580,000 to compensate victims and take significant steps to eliminate discriminatory practices in the future. According to, Robert D. Rose, the EEOC's lead attorney on the case, because SPS is one of the largest firms in the area their “discriminatory practices affected hundreds, if not thousands, of temporary workers.[35]"
Appendix A
Incomplete List of Temp Agencies Operating in the Area
with Location and Contact Information
Labor Ready
3064 Bailey Ave, Buffalo, NY - 14215 - 1617 near Bailey Ave |
(716) 836-1473
https://www.laborready.com
Kelly Services
500 Corporate Pkwy, Buffalo, NY - 14226 -
Call: (716) 837-3996
http://www.kellyservices.com/Global/Home/
Durham Staffing Inc
255 Delaware Ave, Buffalo, NY - 14202 - 2016
Call: (716) 853-4960
http://www.durham.com
E G W PERSONNEL STAFFING
1700 Clinton St, Buffalo, NY - 14206
Call: (716) 822-6166
http://www.egwpersonnel.com
SPS Temporaries Inc
49 W Tupper St, Buffalo, NY - 14202
Call: (716) 842-0500
http://www.spsbuffalo.com
Manpower
150 Essjay Rd, Buffalo, NY - 14221
Call: (716) 634-3200
http://www.manpower.us/en/Job-Seekers.htm
Superior Staff Resources Inc
1526 Walden Ave, Buffalo, NY - 14225
Call: (716) 894-3700
http://www.superiorstaffresources.com
NurseFinders
455 Delaware Ave, Buffalo, NY - 14202
Call: (716) 842-2585
http://www.nursefinders.com
AppleOne
1551 Niagara Falls Blvd, Buffalo, NY - 14228
Call: (716) 835-4005
http://www.appleone.com
Express Employment Professionals
3140 Sheridan Dr, Buffalo, NY - 14226
Call: (716) 833-3348
http://www.expresspersonnel.com
Affinity Personnel Solutions Inc.
300 Delaware Ave, Buffalo, NY - 14202
Call: (716) 695-6777
http://www.affinitypersonnel.com/_index.php
Spherion
2150 Wehrle Dr, Buffalo, NY - 14221
Call: (716) 635-0254
http://www.spherion.com
Office Team
726 Exchange Street - Suite 818 - Buffalo, NY 14210
Phone: 716.842.0852
http://www.roberthalf.com/officeteam/office-temps-job-search
Aerotek
200 John James Audubon Pkwy, Buffalo, NY - 14228
Call: (716) 932-1450
http://www.aerotek.com
Adecco Employment Services
2470 Walden Ave, Buffalo, NY - 14225
(716) 685-5220
http://www.adeccousa.com
Complete Personnel Solutions
2700 William St, Buffalo, NY - 14227
Call: (716) 895-9500
http://hrcps.com
Personnel Resource, Inc.
5500 Main Street, Suite 220
Williamsville, New York 14221-6772
Fax: (716) 633-6779
http://www.perresource.com
Ajilon
325 Essjay Rd, Buffalo, NY - 14221
Call: (877) 312-2342
http://www.ajilon.com
Accountemps
1 Hsbc Ctr, Buffalo, NY - 14203
Call: (716) 842-0801
http://www.roberthalf.com/accountemps/
Temp Power Temporary Services
2875 Union Rd, Buffalo, NY - 14227
Call: (716) 685-8775
N I S Temps
4248 Ridge Lea Rd, Buffalo, NY - 14226 - 1423
Call: (716) 831-9946
http://www.nistemps.com
9
[1] See generally, U.S. Probation Service, WDNY List of Employment Resources:
http://www.nywp.uscourts.gov/employment.html; or this list from former New York State Senator Antoine Thompson: http://www.nysenate.gov/files/pdfs/Employment%20Agencies.pdf
[2] http://www.laborready.com/How-We-Work
[3] Ibid.
[4] http://www.laborready.com/Our-Mission
[5] Ibid.
[6] http://www.laborready.com/How-We-Work
[7] Ibid.
[8] http://www.laborready.com/About-Us
[9] "Labor Ready Inc." Puget Sound Business Journal 25 June 1999: 76. General OneFile. Web. 2 Mar. 2014.
[10] Matter of Angello v Labor Ready, Inc., 7 N.Y.3d 579, 581-82, 2006 N.Y. Slip Op. 08282, 2 (NY 2006)