Don’t miss the “Ask the Experts” event on ASA Central. It takes place today from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Eastern time. Because staying ahead of legal and compliance issues is critical in today’s staffing environment, ASA vice president of government affairs Toby Malara, ASA general counsel Brittany Sakata, and ASA employment policy counsel Pat Treacy will be answering members’ questions and sharing timely insights on issues affecting the industry.

Log in to ASA Central today to participate in the live discussion, gain practical guidance, and hear how peers are navigating challenges similar to the ones you face. If you did not submit a question in advance, you can follow the discussion thread live and post a question for the ASA legal team to address.

Don’t miss the ASA webinar “Chaos-Proof Your Family Business, Session Two: Your Next Family Action Meeting.” It takes place today from 2 to 3 p.m. Eastern time. The two-part webinar concludes with steps business leaders can take to chaos-proof the family business inside of a company—attendees will simulate a family business meeting.

All ASA webinars are complimentary for ASA members, and most qualify for continuing education hours toward ASA certification renewal. To learn more and to register, visit americanstaffing.net.

ASA Central—the dynamic online community just for staffing professionals—is home to more than 27,000 staffing professional profiles and countless ongoing industry conversations.

This week, take a look at your colleagues’ discussions and some of the blogs they’ve posted on ASA Central:

• Earning Health Care Staffing Services accreditation from the Joint Commission
• Overly particular job orders
• placement guarantees for direct hire services

Get involved with the community—update your profile today so you can network with colleagues, join a section community, recommend and comment on your colleagues’ posts, and share your own blog or discussion post. Log in to ASA Central now.

Don’t miss tomorrow’s “Ask the Experts” event on ASA Central, 2–3:30 p.m. Eastern time. Because staying ahead of legal and compliance issues is critical in today’s staffing environment, ASA vice president of government affairs Toby Malara, ASA general counsel Brittany Sakata, and ASA employment policy counsel Pat Treacy will be answering members’ questions and sharing timely insights on issues affecting the industry.

If you have specific topics you’d like the experts to address, you can submit them in advance. Then on Jan. 29, simply log in to ASA Central to participate in the live discussion, gain practical guidance, and hear how peers are navigating challenges similar to the ones you face—no registration is required.

Don’t miss tomorrow’s ASA webinar “Chaos-Proof Your Family Business, Session Two: Your Next Family Action Meeting,” 2–3 p.m. Eastern time. The two-part webinar concludes with steps business leaders can take to chaos-proof the family business inside of a company—attendees will simulate a family business meeting.

All ASA webinars are complimentary for ASA members, and most qualify for continuing education hours toward ASA certification renewal. To learn more and to register, visit americanstaffing.net.

Staffing employment continued to rebound during the week of Jan. 12–18, with the ASA Staffing Index increasing by 2.6% to a rounded value of 84. Staffing companies cited no one primary factor that hindered growth. Staffing jobs were 2.0% higher compared with the same period last year, up from 1.2% recorded the previous week.

New starts, however, decreased in the third week of the year, down by 8.4% from the prior week. Almost one in three staffing companies (32%) reported gains in new assignments week to week, below the average of 41% last year.

The ASA Staffing Index four-week moving average decreased from the previous week to a rounded value of 80. Temporary and contract staffing employment for the four weeks ending Jan. 18 was 1.8% higher than during the same period in 2024.

“Weekly changes in the ASA Staffing Index continue to exceed their levels from prior years, suggesting gradual momentum in staffing employment,” said Noah Yosif, chief economist at ASA. “A more emphatic recovery still has yet to materialize as stagnant labor market conditions depress employers’ appetites for hiring and workers’ sentiments for quitting.”

This week will be used in the January monthly employment situation report scheduled to be issued by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Feb. 6.

Don’t miss the ASA webinar “Chaos-Proof Your Family Business, Session One: Your Inner Family Business and the Chaos-Proof Framework.” It takes place today from 2 to 3 p.m. Eastern time. In the first session of this two-part webinar, Adam Hatcher, Esq., of Twenty One Clear LLC explores why some family companies succeed and others succumb to infighting, selfishness, and poor decision making—and how to prevent a family business from self-destructing.

All ASA webinars are complimentary for ASA members, and most qualify for continuing education hours toward ASA certification renewal. To learn more and to register, visit americanstaffing.net.

Are you looking for ideas on how to improve candidate communication and recruitment? Get insights from industry peers during the ASA Recruiting Professionals Networking Call. It takes place Thursday, Jan. 29, 1–2 p.m. Eastern time.

This virtual networking call, focused on hot topics, trends, and the economic outlook, will be facilitated by ASA member volunteers. Let ASA know what is on your mind when you register so your questions can be included in the conversation. The call qualifies for continuing education hours toward ASA certification renewal.

The ASA Staffing Law & Compliance Conference is the must-attend legal and compliance event for staffing leaders—returning May 7–8 in Washington, DC.

With new federal and state regulations already in effect, and enforcement priorities shifting, you need to stay ahead of risk and make confident compliance decisions by attending this highly focused event that delivers practical, staffing-specific guidance. Get expert insight on immigration and Form I-9 compliance, using artificial intelligence in recruiting, fraud prevention, worker classification, and more.

Session descriptions are now available. Save more than $200 when you register by March 6. Learn more at staffinglawconference.net.

When inclement weather conditions hit, ensuring you are up-to-date on safe work conditions is essential. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration offers a Winter Weather web page that includes various resources on winter weather safety, including the OSHA Cold Stress guide. OSHA has also published a Refrigerated Warehousing guide, which includes useful information on working in cold conditions, and the OSHA Safe Winter Driving guide.

Since 2014, ASA and OSHA have had a formal alliance aimed at educating staffing companies, their clients, and temporary workers about temporary worker rights and employer responsibilities under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. ASA was promoted to OSHA Ambassador status in 2022.