Waiting tables for the emperor of Japan, pouring pints amid the thumping music of a festival main stage, serving wine to A-Listers at the BAFTAs: temporary employment provides a whirlwind of the unexpected. For students in cities where various hospitality events are readily available and require temporary staffing, the traditional part-time summer job is out, and temporary work is in. Choosing shifts to fit around students’ busy summer schedule seems a dream – the opportunity to shape your work calendar around your personal life. But is the unreliability and instability of temporary work, coupled with long hours and often minimal care for employee wellbeing, worth the flexibility (and temporary ecstasy of the glimpse of celebrity)?

“Pay is competitive considering the lack of experience needed”

I spoke to second-year students from London, both studying at Cambridge and elsewhere, to learn if temporary work is all it’s cracked up to be, or if it’s just a guise for poor employment practices and overworked, under-supported staff. Everyone agreed that flexibility is its main draw: most have apps or websites where once registered, available shifts are displayed and employees can pick out ones they want to work, with no restrictions on how many or few hours weekly. As Amelia says, it empowers you to “fit work around life and not life around work”. This is reflected in the people temporary work attracts. Students noted the background of staff varied notably depending on the location of work, the common trait was university students or recent graduates, as well as those in the performing art industry, who are all looking for opportunities for convenient and low-commitment income. Temporary work is particularly ideal for Cambridge students, where Cambridge’s no-job policy during term time makes holding down a long-term job more challenging. Pay is competitive considering the lack of experience needed - most staffing agencies offer roughly the London Living wage (typically between £11-13 an hour). For some, it’s a stop-gap while they source a regular career, but for others, it’s their preferred form of work. Maddie and other students choose to solely do temporary work, whereas Amelia found with Host Staffing there was often “not enough work” available and has now managed to find a full-time summer job which she much prefers. Alice balances temporary work with a part-time job; a chance to make a bit of extra cash. Temporary work however isn’t always a viable option: shift availability relies on nearby events needing staff. This means opportunities are concentrated in London, and in the summer and Christmas periods.

The drawbacks of temporary work are also its strengths. Gone is the mundanity of the same workplace and staff day in and day out, replaced with ever-new batches of colleagues and workplaces. Equally, if you’re looking for a The Office style staff bonding experience then temporary work isn’t the one. Students feel there is “little sense of community” due to the ever-changing co-workers. However, the allure of working VIP events doesn’t lose its glimmer: carrying a tray of champagne is made substantially more exciting when there’s a chance Harry Styles is around the next corner (as Maddie found at the BRITs). Maddie described working at both the BAFTAs and the BRITs as “really, really fun” since she and all the workers felt “less stressed out”, and “could enjoy it a bit more”. I had a similarly joyful time when I was lucky enough to watch The Strokes and Girl in Red perform while working on the main bar at All Points East festival. But the glamorous work that agencies attempt to sell is part illusion: ultimately work is work, there’s no luxury to being on your feet for twelve hours pouring wine and setting tables. When I worked at the Wimbledon Championships, I never saw more of the site than the small corner where I worked. I arrived no earlier than needed and left exhausted in a hurry, rather than hanging around to catch a glimpse of the tennis.

“Often breaks are shoved to the start or end of a shift, and typically employees are given no more than 30 minutes”

Also, with a new manager every shift, how much is the employee being looked after? Most found experiences were highly irregular. Typical employee protections are often forgotten about or side-lined. Hours are long (10 to 12, or more) and unreliable – with the built-in expectation you’ll work beyond scheduled hours if extra staff are needed. Alternately, students related to me that it’s common to be sent home early; and end up making less money than expected. You can also be subject to random shift cancellations: Alice found Host would often cancel her shifts only a few hours before she was due to begin. Moreover, Alice described the likelihood of decent breaks as “iffy”. Often breaks are shoved to the start or end of a shift, and typically employees are given no more than 30 minutes (the legal minimum being 20) despite shifts of 12 hours or more. Fast-paced, hectic environments produce stressed managers, which lends itself to carelessness regarding employer responsibilities, even if there is no active agenda to exploit young workers. Similarly, when your employers don’t know you personally, they are less inclined to ensure your wellbeing – Freya felt that the employees are “just numbers” to the company.

On the whole, employers manage to provide employees with their legal entitlements of breaks, and fair hours, but most had one or two horror stories. When Freya worked at the Chelsea Flower show, on both her 7am-5pm shifts she was given only one 15 minute break a couple of hours into her shift, and, when she pointed out the illegality, it was suggested she “take her break” when her shift was over. There’s less incentive for managers to develop good working relationships when they are unlikely to work with the temporary employees again.

But is the fact a growing number of young people are turning to temporary work something to lose sleep over? Does it prevent us from learning about work/life balance or from progressing at one role? Considering for most people it’s just a summer side job, this feels unlikely. If not specifically CV-allotted skills, it equips staff with new talents. Freya mentioned learning to deal with the “diverse clientele” and feels that temporary work has given her more skills than if she’d stuck with one part-time role. Furthermore, temporary work isn’t confined to singular shifts – longer weekends or week-long events are an option. Maddie worked at the Goodwood Festival of Speed for four days, where the staffing agency provided her with accommodation at a local university (described lovingly as “prison cell-like”). Amelia woke up at the break of dawn for four days straight to board a company-provided coach from London to work at the Royal International Air Tattoo.

Ultimately, those I spoke to did endorse temporary work: it’s straightforward, easily available, and rarely dull. Trading a quiet local pub for a festival main stage is an alluring prospect. Though individual managers can be difficult, big agencies are under pressure to ensure employee rights are being protected. Flexible part-time jobs may remain the ideal, but for cash-strapped students, convenient if sporadic work is better than none at all.