On-Demand Staffing
June 3, 2025

How to Prevent No Shows

Workers often no show because of misleading job postings or bad experiences with supervisors. Bacon does two big things to help prevent no shows.

Bacon Inc

No one likes no-shows. No shows are one of the most frustrating parts of using temp labor or staffing through a labor agency near you. When demand is high or labor is critical, businesses need workers who show up.  

The best way to prevent no shows is staffing through an online staffing platform, Bacon.

The Two Types of No-Shows 

In temporary labor there are reasonable no-shows and there are not reasonable no-shows. It’s important to identify which type you’re dealing with and respond accordingly. 

Reasonable 

Reasonable no-shows include illness, emergencies, transportation failure, and childcare falling through. These are reasonable things that just sometimes happen in life. 

Bacon encourages Bacon Workers to let the business know if a reasonable no-show situation is happening as soon as possible. But this type of no-show is reasonable. 

However, if these types of things are consistently happening to a temp worker it could be a sign that the worker needs to do a better job at organizing and planning ahead. Bacon also helps workers who fall in this category learn how to plan ahead.

 

Reasonable no-shows:

  • Emergencies or illness
  • Transportation failure
  • Legitimate last-minute conflicts

Not Reasonable

Not reasonable no-shows are forgetting a shift, accepting a better offer, losing interest, or just being lazy. These are all things that can and should be avoided. 

Traditional temp agencies near you often lack visibility into why workers no-show and if the reason is not reasonable there are no consequences to the workers. 

Bacon has consequences and holds the workers accountable for not reasonable no shows.

Not reasonable no-shows:

  • Forgetting a shift
  • Accepting a better offer
  • No longer interested and not communicating

Why Workers Don’t Show Up 

There are two reasons workers don’t show up for general labor staffing gigs. Workers don’t show up if they feel they’ve been misled by the job posts or if they have a negative experience at a previous shift. 

Bait-and-Switch Situations

The feeling of being bait and switched is not one temp workers near you want to experience. If a worker arrives at a shift and the job is different than the job posts suggests or the work is more difficult than the posting suggests they are likely to not show up again. 

If the job posting is saying light general labor but the real work turns out to be warehouse temp staffing that is heavy lifting, that will give workers problems. If workers feel that the work is more difficult than the pay they may feel it is not worth it and stop showing up. 

Negative Work Experience

One of the biggest reported reasons for not showing up is a negative work experience. When workers come in and are treated poorly or ignored they notice that. If the first experience with a supervisor or company is negative workers are less likely to be show up for future shifts

If the leadership is not welcoming and the onboarding is chaotic, workers won’t want to come back. Even temp workers want to feel respected and safe. Poor experiences reduce the chances of repeat engagement. 

How to Reduce No-Shows – What You Can Do

There are two things you can do to help reduce no shows and make finding temp staff for your business easier. They are fostering a great working environment and matching the job description to the work. 

Foster a Great Working Environment

Make sure your supervisors are good supervisors. They make workers feel welcomed, they are organized and can give workers the support they need to be successful. 

Match the Job Description to the Work

Do your best to accurately describe the work in the job posting. Take the time to provide a detailed description of the work and what the workers will be doing.  

If the work is difficult to be honest, this will help you find temp employees who can do the work and who will want to come back. We recommend paying more for shifts that are more difficult. 

How Bacon Helps Prevent No-Shows

Bacon does a few things to address the no-show problem as an online staffing platform. The first is the Bacon Score and the second is the Backup Worker Program. 

The Bacon Score is a comprehensive number score that shows a workers reliability and work ethic. When a worker doesn’t show up their Bacon Score is significantly impacted which makes it harder for them to be chosen for future shifts. 

The Backup Worker Program sends backup workers to your shifts to ensure shifts get filled. Backup workers know they are a backup and if the business doesn’t need them Bacon compensates them for their time. 

Bacon is the best way to avoid no shows. With a few steps from businesses and the key tools Bacon has, businesses can find reliable temporary labor near them. Bacon and online staffing services are the best of the types of staffing services to find workers who show up.

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