Firms are relying more on part-time, contract and temporary workers who are inherently more flexible.
As a temporary worker, Mr. Hirano was technically the employee of a staffing agency, and not of the factory where he worked.
During the Spring Festival, many people hire temporary worker to do the cleaning.
It hired Samuel as a temporary worker to do the job.
One former temporary worker at BMW recalls that whereaspermanent staff get a 1 Eurodiscount on meals in the canteen, Zeitarbeitermust pay full price.
Many of these new positions are for temporary workers only.
So for a week or more, the couple and the children still living at home had been getting by with the help of only two maids and one temporary worker they had hired.