The Top 5 Temp Agencies in Houston

Burnett Specialists Staffing & Recruiting was founded back in 1974 and is an employee-owned staffing business. They have over 6 different locations to date.

They cater to a lot of different specializations, such as Accounting & Financial, Engineering, Healthcare & Medical, and more. This is best for business owners who own multiple businesses across different niches. 

What we like about Burnett Specialists Staffing & Recruiting is that they offer payrolling services. The company itself helps you process payroll tax statements, year-end taxes, employee payroll, and more.

This means that you wouldn’t have to outsource a different company for this specific service.

If you’re looking into availing their direct-hire services, you wouldn’t have to pay any fees until you’ve employed their pre-screened employee. This is great as you wouldn’t have to worry about any added expenses.

What we don’t like about Burnett Specialists Staffing & Recruiting is that they can get quite spammy with their calls for employment. 

On top of that, despite being eager to hire a lot of employees, the hiring managers usually don’t get back to applicants and they themselves have to call in for a follow-up.

Although this doesn’t directly affect business owners, this might be concerning for those who care about the company processes of those that they work with.

Overall, if you’re looking for a temp agency that can provide you with a lot of different services, Burnett Specialists Staffing & Recruiting is the way to go.

Reliable Staffing has been in the temp agency business for over 30 years. 

At present, they have over 26 locations spread all over the United States. They have over 7 branches in Texas alone. 

What’s truly impressive is that they were included in Forbes’ list of America’s best temp staffing firms. They were listed in 66th place among 150 firms specializing in filling temporary and contract positions.

They offer a wide variety of services, from temp-to-hire services to localized payroll, full-time recruitment, and more. A service that stands out the most is its drug screening service.

Many companies prioritize having a drug-free workplace for their employees. Worry not as Reliable Staffing has a controlled substance testing program that can be availed by business owners.

You can have the test conducted in-house or at your office. They also have partner laboratories that are qualified in providing drug tests if their branch doesn’t cover this service.

We also like how they have extended office hours. When you’re in need of their service, you can call their landline and reach a customer service representative who can assist you outside of the 9 to 5 working hours.

A downside to Reliable Staffing is how some of their employees have complained about receiving their  pay late. This is alarming especially since this can damage your relationship with the employee.

In addition, some of the employees were also offered jobs outside of the job scope they applied for. This can be quite alarming as you never know if you’re given an employee that doesn’t fit your job description.

Reliable Staffing is still a great option, especially if you want a company you can reach anytime. However, make sure to double-check your employee’s credentials as well to ensure you’re getting someone that’s best fit for your company.

Murray Resources was founded back in 1988 and has matched over 800 employers in Houston and has provided jobs to over 20,000 applicants.

They’ve also got a long list of awards, the most recent ones being World Staffing’s Top Staffing Companies to Work for, Houston Business Journals’ #1 Best Places to Work in Houston, and Forbes’ America’s Best Recruiters.

What we really like about them is that they offer onsite recruiting management. This is an exceptional service that’s rarely offered by staffing agencies.

Onsite recruitment service allows the temp agency to become part of the business, taking care of all of their recruitment needs. This allows the temp services to be tailored exactly to the needs of a specific business.

We also like how they have a thorough employment process called MASTR Process which includes Murray assessment, screening, testing, and referencing. 

This looks into the applicant’s personality profile, skills, and compatibility. They also conduct reference and background checks that ensure that they’re fit for work.

A downside is that their rates are a bit higher compared to other temp agencies. In addition, they also don’t have any protocols set for unsatisfactory employees.

Overall, we’re quite happy with the services that Murray Resources offers, especially their onsite recruiting management that not many temp agencies offer.

LINK staffing has been in the industry for 42 years now and currently have 5 branches to date.

What’s impressive about LINK staffing is that they’ve been a recipient of the Best Staffing Award by CareerBuilder for five straight years until 2019. 

They’ve also been placed in the top 500 Entrepreneur Franchise List and the Veteran’s Top 500 list back in 2018. Their areas of specialization include general labor, skilled crafts and trades, and light industrial positions.

What we find remarkable is how they have a 9-step employee selection system. This includes multiple statistically-validated tests, interviews, and job-matching programs.

This ensures that you’ll be able to get a qualified employee that’s a perfect fit for your job post. 

They also offer peak period hiring services. During peak season, you may be in need of an extra set of hands so this is an extremely beneficial service.

Most of the time, you’ll need to start planning to hire in advance and you also need to take into consideration the training your employees will need. 

Having someone go through the entire process for you allows you to focus on other aspects of your job instead.

A concern we’ve heard, however, is that employers sometimes receive employees who don’t perform as well. This isn’t entirely LINK Staffing’s fault as some employees only put their best foot forward during interviews.

If you’re looking to apply at LINK Staffing, take note that there may not always be positions available. Some applicants have reported that they were given possible jobs that were still months away.

Overall, if you’re looking for a thorough agency that’s got a good selection of services, you should give LINK staffing a try.

Frontline Source Group was established back in 2003 and is one of the fastest-growing temp agencies in Houston. They’re also a member of the American Staffing Association which conforms to the highest hiring ethical standards in the industry.

They have received multiple awards, including Inavero’s  Best of Staffing Client Satisfaction & Talent Satisfaction, SIA’s Best Staffing Firms to Work For, Expertise.com’s Best Employment Agencies in Dallas, and more.

What we like about Frontline Source Group is that they have a 5-year warranty for direct placements. If they have concerns during the 5 years of employment, they will be credited a prorated amount for the replacement.

They also have a promotion protection plan that ensures that the employees they hire are promoted within their first year of service. They also give 50% discounts on the placement percentage fee for your next hire. 

They also provide a benefits package for their employees that includes medical benefit options, holiday pay, vacation pay, and more. This provides extra incentives for employees to do a good job at work and allows them to feel secure. 

What we don’t like, however, is that they only have candidate testing for select roles. This means that they don’t carry out the same screening for all candidates.

Another downside is that some applicants don’t get the highest possible position they’re qualified for. Although this can be expected in any employment agency and can be remedied by the possibility of future promotion.

Overall, Frontline Source Group’s benefits package and 5-year warranty program really make them a great option for a temp agency.