Staffing Industry Helps Fight a Vicious Cycle

In today’s society, good jobs are getting harder and harder to come by. Whether you have a high school diploma or are carrying years’ worth of education in a PhD, we are all fighting a battle to gain employment. The stakes are getting higher with special qualifications and an expected clean slate.

Yet, what happens to those that remain unemployed or are striving to break their drug addictions? How do they become gainfully employed and finally nip their dependency in the bud? Where is the opportunity?

A new graphic from 12 Keys Recovery clearly demonstrates the correlation between unemployment and drug abuse. While these statistics help us to visualize the idea that “digging yourself out” of a proverbial “hole,” is much more difficult to do when employers tend to turn the other cheek at background records of drug use and abuse.

The Problem
According to the graphic below, a self-sustaining system of drug use and unemployment supply each other. As a person becomes unemployed, their likelihood for substance abuse increases. Then, with an addiction, jobs in turn become more difficult to acquire and sustain.

This vicious cycle affects approximately 18.1 percent of unemployed U.S. adults. To put these numbers into perspective, the percentage of unemployed adults who use illicit substances is more than double the percentage of adults employed full-time who use these substances. Adults with part-time employment fall somewhere in between, but closer to the full-time workers.

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As a result, permanent job placements are harder to come by given the competition for highly-qualified potential employees and the in-depth screenings held by employers. Therefore, a person who is struggling to squash their drug addiction has a harder time gaining employment, and faces the risk of falling deeper into their substance abuse.

Think of a barrel of crabs. One single crab is trying to make its escape by slowly using its claws to precariously climb to the top of the barrel. However, hundreds of other crabs continue to claw and pull that single crab back down to the bottom of the barrel, making it impossible to escape. The same goes for someone with a drug abuse history. When their opportunity is out of reach, they are less likely to free themselves from their own addiction.

The Solution
Along comes a window of opportunity for the crab. The barrel’s lid comes open and the crab makes a break for it. That small window of opportunity is the sound structure of the staffing industry. With its core values of assisting, searching and granting temporary employment for clients, they serve as a well-respected support system for those to start on the right foot.

At the heart of a staffing agency, the goal is to match the perfect job that fits the personality and qualifications of their clients. They have a connection with new openings, reliable companies and a jump on some unique job positions.

For those who are unemployed, it’s a great place to start to get your “foot in the door.” While some of the basic screenings include a drug test, this is to ensure that their clients are capable and responsible. If someone has recently recovered from substance abuse, granting temporary work will help to break the cycle and provide a great opportunity to remain clean.

Since the staffing industry relies heavily on those seeking temporary employment or in-between careers or jobs, having this opportunity benefits both parties. The unemployed will find work and the agencies will fill positions with qualified employees and keep businesses afloat.

In this case, it is a win-win situation. Not only does it help those that may be at risk for substance abuse, but also the staffing industry has the opportunity to grow and prosper. Breaking the cycle can help increase jobs and the number of qualified employees.

MORE: How staffing firms can tackle the growing drug abuse problem