Question

Temporary-services firms supply trained workers to other companies on a temporary basis. Temporary-services firms lose business when the economy shows signs of beginning to weaken. They gain business when the economy begins to recover but often lose business again when the economy stabilizes. These firms have begun to gain business in the present weak economy. The economy therefore must be beginning to recover.
Which of the following is an assumption on which the above argument depends?

A) Temporary-services firms are more likely to regain old clients than to acquire new ones when the economy begins to recover
B) Temporary-services firms do not gain business when an already weak economy worsens
C) New companies do not often hire temporary help until they have been in business for some time
D) Companies that use workers from temporary-services firms seldom hire those workers to fill permanent positions
E) Temporary-services firms can most easily find qualified new workers when the economy is at its weakest

Answer 1

Temporary-services firms do not gain business when an already weak economy worsens.

Explanation:

Temporary employment agencies–commonly known as staffing services –supply employees by short-term contractual arrangements or permanent temporary positions to a variety of companies. In the minds of the bosses, temp agencies perform many of the functions of their department of human resources but can do this more effectively and have access to a larger pool of applicants.

Nevertheless, Temp agencies have detractors. Instead of offering holiday time, health insurance or other incentives, temp agencies find them cost-cutting mechanisms that allow employers to use staff. While both pros and cons, temporary agencies form an important component of the global job market, particularly in the U.S. where more than two million Americans had been employee-owned at temp agencies as early as 2004