Quick answer: a staffing agency finds you work with its client companies, and for a temporary placement the agency is your legal employer, it pays you, makes your deductions and covers you for workplace injury, while you do the job at the client’s site. In Ontario it is free: an agency cannot legally charge you a fee to find you work. You keep all your Employment Standards Act rights, including at least the $17.60 minimum wage, overtime after 44 hours, and the right to refuse unsafe work. Registering is fast, and the workers who get the best assignments are simply the ones who are reliable, certified where it counts, and easy to reach. This guide explains exactly how it all works and how to make it work for you.

Working through a staffing agency is one of the fastest ways into steady work in Canada, especially in warehousing, logistics and the trades, but a lot of job seekers are unsure how it actually works: who pays them, whether it costs anything, what their rights are, and how to get the good shifts instead of the leftovers. This guide answers all of it in plain language, from registering to getting paid to landing better-paid assignments, with a section for students, work-permit holders and newcomers at the end.

Who this guide is for. If you are looking for warehouse, factory, logistics or trades work, are new to Canada and building your first local experience, are a student needing income that fits around class, or are simply between jobs and want to start earning quickly, agency work is built for you. It is also one of the few routes into steady work that does not demand a long resume, references you may not yet have, or weeks of waiting. Everything below assumes no prior experience with agencies and walks you through it step by step.

What Is a Staffing Agency and How Does It Work for You?

A staffing agency connects workers with companies that need them. Instead of applying to twenty employers one at a time, you register once with the agency and it matches you to its client companies’ openings, often many of them, and often faster than you could find on your own.

For a temporary placement, the agency is your employer. This is the part that surprises people. When you take a temp assignment, the agency is your legal employer, not the company whose building you work in. The agency pays you, takes off your deductions, and stays your employer between assignments. The client company directs your work on site, but your paycheque, your rights and your record all sit with the agency.

You can be placed three ways. A temporary assignment (short-term or seasonal, agency pays you), a temp-to-hire placement (you start through the agency and the company can take you on permanently if it works out), or a direct placement (the agency finds you a permanent job you start straight away). Each has a place, and we cover which suits you below.

A quick word on the language you will hear. Agencies use a few terms interchangeably, and it helps to know them. Staffing agency, temp agency, employment agency and recruiter all describe roughly the same thing from your side: an organisation that connects you with employers. You may be called an assignment employee, which simply means you are the agency’s employee assigned to work at a client’s site. A placement is a job the agency puts you into. None of it is complicated once you know the words, and any good coordinator will happily explain anything you are unsure about.

Why it can be faster than applying yourself. The agency already has relationships with employers who are hiring right now, and it has already done the screening those employers would otherwise make you wait through. If your paperwork and availability are ready, you can sometimes be working within days rather than the weeks a normal job hunt takes.

Think of the agency as your agent, not your boss. The clearest way to picture the relationship: the agency works to find you paid work because that is how it earns, so its interest and yours point the same direction. It already knows which employers are hiring, what they pay, and what they need, information you would otherwise spend weeks piecing together. Your job is to make yourself easy to place: clear about what you want, honest about your availability, and dependable once you are on a shift. Do that, and the agency becomes a genuine ally in your job search rather than just a middleman.

Does It Cost Me Anything to Use a Staffing Agency?

No. And if anyone tells you otherwise, walk away.

It is free to you, by law. In Ontario it is illegal for a staffing agency to charge you a fee to find you work, per the Employment Standards Act rules for temporary help agencies. The agency is paid by the company that needs workers, not by you. You never pay to register, to be placed, or to be kept on the roster.

What about the “markup”? You may hear that the company pays the agency more than you earn per hour. That is true, and it is normal: the extra covers the employer costs the agency carries on your behalf, its share of your CPP and EI, your vacation pay, workplace coverage, and its own service. None of it comes out of your pocket, and it does not reduce your wage below what you were promised.

You are not losing money to the agency. Some workers worry that because the client pays the agency more than the worker earns, they are somehow being shortchanged. They are not. On a direct hire, the same employer costs, CPP, EI, vacation pay, injury coverage, still exist; they are just paid by the employer instead of an agency. The agency’s margin covers the service of finding you work and running your payroll. Your take-home pay for the hours you work is exactly what your rate says it is, minus only the normal legal deductions every worker pays.

A hard red flag. Any “agency” that asks you for money, to register, for training you must buy, for equipment, or for a “placement fee”, is not operating legally. A genuine agency never charges the worker. If you are asked to pay, that is your signal to stop and check the agency against Ontario’s public register, covered later.

Why this rule exists. The no-fee rule protects workers from a scam that used to be common: charging desperate job seekers up front for work that never materialised, or skimming a cut of their wages. Ontario made worker-paid fees illegal precisely to stamp that out. So the rule is not a technicality, it is your protection, and an agency that breaks it is showing you exactly the kind of operator it is. The moment money flows from you to the agency, something is wrong.

Legitimate costs versus illegal fees. There is one honest nuance worth knowing. An agency cannot charge you to find you work, full stop. But if you choose to obtain a certification such as a forklift licence, the training itself has a real cost that a training provider may charge, that is not the agency charging you a placement fee, it is you paying a separate provider for a qualification you keep. The line is simple: money to the agency for work is illegal; money you spend on your own portable certification is an investment you own. If ever unsure, ask exactly what a charge is for and who receives it.

How Do I Register With a Staffing Agency?

Quickly, and usually for free in well under an hour. Here is what the process looks like and how to make it fast.

What you will need. Proof you can work in Canada (citizenship, permanent residence, or a valid work or study permit), a piece of government photo ID, your SIN, banking details for direct deposit, and any certifications you hold (forklift, WHMIS, working at heights, first aid). Have digital photos of these ready and registration goes faster.

What happens at intake. You will give your details, your availability, the kind of work you want, and how far you can travel. Be honest about all of it, especially availability. An agency matches you to shifts it believes you will actually turn up for, so an accurate picture gets you better matches, not fewer.

Set your travel radius realistically. When you say how far you will travel, be honest with yourself about transit times and cost, especially for early shifts that may start before buses run frequently. Accepting a shift you then struggle to reach on time damages the reliability record that matters most. It is better to set a realistic radius and be dependable within it than to claim you will go anywhere and then arrive late or cancel. You can always widen your radius later once you know the routes and the pay justifies the commute.

Your first day, step by step. When you get your first assignment, the agency will give you the site address, the start time, what to wear, who to ask for, and how to record your hours. Plan your route the night before and aim to arrive fifteen minutes early. Bring your ID and any tickets the role requires. On arrival, find your named contact, complete any site induction, and ask where the walkways and exits are before you start moving around. Getting the first day right, on time, prepared, safe, sets the tone for everything that follows with that agency.

Register with more than one. You are free to sign up with two or three agencies at once, and it is sensible to do so, since each has different client companies and different openings. Keep your availability updated with each. There is no loyalty penalty; agencies expect it.

Then keep in touch. The workers who get called first are the ones the coordinator remembers as reliable and reachable. Answer your phone, reply quickly, and let them know when your availability changes. A two-minute update keeps you at the top of the list.

Treat the coordinator relationship as the job. The person who assigns shifts, the coordinator or recruiter, is effectively your gateway to income, and a good relationship with them pays off directly. Be polite, be responsive, thank them when a placement goes well, and give them plenty of notice if you cannot make a shift rather than simply not showing up. Coordinators juggle dozens of workers and remember the ones who make their job easier. Being that worker is worth more than any qualification on your file.

How Does Getting Paid Work?

The agency pays you, on the agency’s schedule, with normal deductions, exactly like any other employer.

Who pays you. The agency, not the client company. You submit or confirm your hours (often through an app or a signed timesheet), and the agency pays you, usually weekly, by direct deposit. Your pay stub comes from the agency and shows your hours, rate and deductions.

What comes off your pay. The normal, legal deductions: income tax, CPP and EI. These are the same deductions any employer makes, and they mean you are building EI eligibility and CPP contributions like any other worker. The agency remits them for you.

Your rate and your premiums. You are told your hourly rate before you accept an assignment. Ontario’s general minimum wage is $17.60 an hour, per the Ministry of Labour, and that is the floor, not the target. Night, afternoon and weekend shifts often pay a premium, and overtime rates apply once you pass 44 hours in a week.

Watch for shift premiums, they add up. The difference between a day shift at the base rate and an afternoon or night shift with a premium can be a few dollars an hour, which over a full week is real money. If you are flexible about when you work, ask your coordinator which shifts pay premiums; the less popular hours often pay more precisely because fewer people want them. For students and anyone whose schedule is flexible, deliberately targeting premium shifts is one of the simplest ways to earn more for the same hours.

Direct deposit is your choice. If you are paid by direct deposit, you choose the bank account; an agency cannot force you to use a particular bank. Keep your banking details current with each agency so nothing delays your pay.

Understand your pay stub. When your first pay arrives, read the stub. It should show the hours you worked, your hourly rate, any premium, and the deductions for income tax, CPP and EI. If the hours or rate look wrong, raise it with the agency straight away while the shift is fresh, small errors are easy to fix quickly and awkward to prove weeks later. Keeping your own simple record of the shifts you worked and the hours makes any correction painless, and it is a good habit from day one.

What Are My Rights as an Agency Worker?

The same core rights as any other employee in Ontario. Being an “assignment employee” does not make you a second-class worker, and it is worth knowing exactly what you are entitled to.

• At least minimum wage. You must be paid at least the $17.60 general minimum, and your agreed rate is often higher.
• Overtime pay. 1.5 times your rate after 44 hours in a work week in Ontario, per the ESA.
• Public holiday and vacation pay. Assignment employees are entitled to public holiday pay and to vacation pay (4%, rising to 6% after five years).
• The right to refuse unsafe work. You have the same right to refuse unsafe work as any worker, and you cannot be punished for using it.
• Protection from reprisal. Neither the agency nor the client can penalise you for asking about your pay, raising a safety concern, or exercising any ESA right.
• Information about your assignment. The agency must give you, in writing, its legal name and contact details and information about the assignment, including the wage rate.

If something is wrong. If you are not paid correctly, are asked to work unsafely, or are charged a fee, you can raise it with the agency and, if needed, with the Ministry of Labour. You cannot be fired or dropped from the roster for asserting a right you legally have. Knowing this is what lets you work with confidence rather than worry.

Your status does not change your rights. It is worth stating plainly because some workers are told otherwise: being a temp, being new to Canada, or being on a permit does not reduce your employment rights. Minimum wage is minimum wage for everyone. The right to a safe workplace applies to everyone. The ban on charging you a fee applies to everyone. Anyone who suggests you deserve less because of your status is not describing the law, they are trying to take advantage of you, and that itself is a reason to change agencies.

Temporary, Temp-to-Hire or Permanent: What’s the Difference for Me?

The three placement types affect your security, your flexibility and your path to a permanent job differently. Here is how each feels from your side.

Temp-to-hire is the underrated one. If your goal is a permanent job, temp-to-hire is often the smartest route in. You get to try the workplace before committing, the employer gets to see you work, and if it fits, you convert to permanent staff without competing against a fresh pile of applicants. Many permanent warehouse and trades jobs are filled exactly this way. In Ontario, a company can generally hire you directly after six months without paying the agency a conversion fee, so do not assume the agency can block a permanent offer, it cannot.

Temporary work is not a lesser option. For a lot of people, students, newcomers, anyone between jobs, temporary assignments are the point, not a consolation. They pay now, build Canadian work experience and references, and flex around your life. Plenty of workers string temporary assignments into steady year-round income.

References are part of what you are earning. Beyond the wages, every assignment you complete well earns you something that does not show on a pay stub: a reference and a track record. For newcomers especially, Canadian work experience and someone who can vouch for you are exactly what the next employer asks for, and they are often harder to get than the job itself. Treat each assignment as building that reputation, not just earning that week’s pay, and the value compounds well beyond the hours worked.

How people actually build a career from temp work. A common and successful pattern looks like this: start with whatever assignments you can get, build a reliability record over a few weeks, use that standing to get a forklift or other certification funded or arranged, move up to better-paid operator shifts, then convert a temp-to-hire assignment into a permanent role, or get recruited directly by an employer who saw you work. None of the steps requires a degree or connections. Each one is earned by turning up and being good to work with, which is entirely within your control.

How Do I Get the Best Assignments?

This is the part most job seekers never get told, and it is the difference between waiting by the phone and being the first call. None of it requires a polished resume.

Reliability is your real resume. Agencies are not screening for the best-written CV. They are screening for who will turn up, on time, for the shift they agreed, and work safely. Every coordinator keeps a mental (and often literal) list of who is reliable, and those workers get offered the next, better assignment first. One no-show can undo months of good work; showing up consistently is the single highest-return thing you can do.

Get a certification. A forklift licence is the fastest way to raise your pay in a warehouse: it is short, affordable, and it moves you from general-labour rates toward the top of the band. Material handlers earn a median of $22.00 an hour nationally, but certified equipment operators sit higher. WHMIS and working-at-heights tickets open more doors too. See how far certification can take you in our guide to the highest-paying warehouse jobs in Canada, and what an employer must provide around forklift certification.

Be easy to reach and quick to say yes. Assignments often come up at short notice. The worker who answers the phone at 6am and can start that day gets the shift, and gets remembered for the next one. Keep your phone on, reply fast, and keep your availability honest and current.

Say yes to the first assignments. Early on, taking the shifts offered, even the less glamorous ones, builds your reliability record fast. Once a coordinator trusts you, the better-paid, more regular assignments follow. Treat the first few weeks as proving ground, because that is exactly what they are.

What good looks like on a shift. Turning up is the start, not the whole of it. On the shift itself: arrive a few minutes early, wear the required gear (steel-toed boots are near-universal in warehouses), listen carefully during any orientation, ask where the marked walkways and emergency exits are, work at a steady safe pace, and tell a supervisor rather than guessing if you are unsure how to do something safely. Workers who do these things are the ones supervisors ask for by name, and being requested by a client employer is the fastest route to more and better work.

Feedback is a gift, use it. If a coordinator passes on feedback from a client, positive or critical, take it seriously and act on it. A note that you were a bit late, or that a particular site wants faster pick rates, is not a rebuke; it is a map to the next assignment. Workers who adjust based on feedback move up quickly because they show the agency they are coachable and low-risk to place. Asking your coordinator how a placement went, and what you could do better, marks you as someone worth investing in.

Be honest about your skills. Claiming a certification or experience you do not have gets discovered on day one, on a site where safety matters, and it ends the relationship. Under-promise slightly and deliver; it builds trust faster than overclaiming ever could.

The compounding effect of reliability. Reliability is not just about keeping one assignment; it compounds. Each shift you complete well makes the coordinator more willing to put you forward for the next, better one, and to vouch for you to the client employer who might hire you permanently. Over a few months, a worker who simply shows up and works safely can go from occasional shifts to being the first person called and the name an employer requests by default. That trajectory is invisible on day one and obvious by month three, and it starts with the very first shift you accept.

What Jobs Can I Actually Get Through an Agency?

A wide range, but agencies are strongest in exactly the areas where employers most need workers right now, which is good news for you.

Warehouse and logistics. Pickers, packers, general labour, forklift and reach-truck operators, shipper-receivers, inventory clerks. Demand is high and steady, entry-level roles need no experience, and there is a clear ladder from general labour up to team lead and supervisor. Our complete guide to warehouse staffing lays out the roles and pay.

Skilled trades. If you are certified or apprenticing, the trades are in structural shortage and pay well: agencies place electricians, welders, millwrights, HVAC mechanics and more. The scale of the demand is set out in our look at the skilled trades in shortest supply in Canada, and the fuller picture is in our skilled trades hiring guide.

Light industrial and manufacturing. Assembly, machine operation, packaging and quality roles, often temp-to-hire, and a common route into a permanent manufacturing job.

Do not overlook the ladder. Agency work is often treated as the bottom rung, but in warehousing and manufacturing the ladder above it is short and real: general labour leads to certified operator, which leads to team lead, which leads to supervisor, and the pay roughly doubles across that range. The workers who climb it are rarely the fastest on day one; they are the ones who stayed reliable, got certified, and made themselves the person a supervisor trusts. Agency work is not a dead end unless you treat it as one.

Pay varies by role, shift and certification. Always check the current band for your role and city with the free Government of Canada Job Bank wage tool so you know what a fair rate looks like before you accept.

Know your worth before the phone rings. Before you accept assignments, spend ten minutes on the free Job Bank wage tool checking what your role pays in your city. Knowing that a material handler earns a median of $22.00 an hour, or where a certified forklift operator sits, means you can recognise a fair offer and a low one. You are not obliged to take every shift at any rate; a worker who knows the going rate negotiates from a stronger position and avoids being underpaid out of simple uncertainty.

Agency or apply direct: you can do both. Using an agency does not stop you applying to employers directly at the same time, and there is no reason to choose. Direct applications can land a specific job you want; agencies get you working sooner, across many employers, often into places that only hire through agencies. Many workers run both tracks at once, taking agency shifts for income now while pursuing direct applications for a particular role. The agency route has one clear edge for getting started: speed, and steady income while the slower search plays out.

Students, Work-Permit Holders and Newcomers: What You Need to Know

Agency work is one of the most accessible routes into the Canadian labour market, but a few rules apply to specific groups. Always confirm your own conditions on your permit and on Canada.ca, because immigration rules change.

International students. If your study permit allows off-campus work, you can generally work up to 24 hours per week during academic terms and full-time during scheduled breaks of at least seven days, up to 180 days of unlimited work per calendar year. Check the exact condition printed on your study permit before you accept shifts, and tell your agency your limit so it does not schedule you over it. Warehouse and light-industrial shifts flex well around class, which is why they feature among the best part-time jobs for students in Canada.

Students: protect your permit, it is worth more than any shift. The work-hour limit on a study permit is not a guideline; exceeding it can put your permit and your future in Canada at risk, which is a far bigger cost than any shift is worth. Track your hours yourself, tell your agency your weekly limit clearly, and never let an eagerness to earn push you over it. During scheduled breaks you can work full time, so plan your bigger earning around those windows. A good agency will respect your limit; if one pressures you to work beyond it, that is a serious warning sign about the agency, not an opportunity.

Work-permit holders. You can work through an agency if your permit allows it. If you hold an open work permit, you can generally work for most employers; if your permit is employer-specific, check whether agency placements are permitted before you register. When in doubt, confirm on the IRCC work pages or with an authorised immigration representative.

Newcomers and permanent residents. Agency work is one of the quickest ways to build Canadian experience and references, which are what many employers ask for first. It gets you working, earning and known while you settle in, and temp-to-hire assignments can turn into your first permanent Canadian job. Your work rights are identical to any other worker’s; do not let anyone tell you otherwise or pay less than the legal minimum.

One rule for everyone. Whatever your status, the agency cannot charge you a fee, must pay you at least minimum wage, and must respect your right to a safe workplace. Those protections do not depend on your immigration status.

Keep your own documents in order. Whatever your status, keep digital copies of your permit, ID, SIN and any certifications somewhere you can send them quickly, and keep track of your permit’s expiry and conditions yourself rather than relying on anyone else to. Agencies work faster with workers whose paperwork is ready, and staying on top of your own status protects you if a question ever arises. It is a small habit that removes friction from every placement.

How Do I Spot a Bad Agency?

Most agencies are legitimate, but a few are not, and knowing the warning signs protects you.

• It asks you for money. Any fee to register, be placed, or get “training” you must buy is illegal. This is the clearest red flag of all.
• It is not licensed. Since 1 July 2024, Ontario agencies must be licensed. You can look any agency up on Ontario’s public list of licensed agencies.
• It is vague about pay. You should be told your rate, the hours and the location before you accept. Evasiveness about money is a bad sign.
• It pressures you into unsafe or misrepresented work. A good agency describes the job honestly and never pushes you onto a site without proper safety orientation.
• It withholds your pay or documents. Your pay, pay stubs and record of employment are your right. Delays and excuses are a warning.

Trust the basics. A legitimate agency is licensed, never charges you, tells you your rate up front, and treats your safety as its responsibility. If those four things are true, you are in good hands. If any one of them is not, look elsewhere, you have every right to.

Trust your instincts, and you have options. You are never trapped with a particular agency. If an agency charges you, misrepresents work, is careless about safety, or treats you as though your rights depend on your status, you can simply register with another, and you should. Because it is free to sign up with several agencies, you always have alternatives, and a good agency knows it has to treat workers well to keep them. That freedom is your protection: the power to walk away is exactly what keeps the relationship fair.

The Bottom Line

Working with a staffing agency is a fast, free and legitimate way into steady work in Canada, particularly in warehousing, logistics and the trades, where employers are hiring now. The agency is your employer for temporary assignments, it pays you and covers you, and it costs you nothing because the client company pays the agency, not you. You keep every core employment right: minimum wage, overtime, holiday and vacation pay, and a safe workplace. And the workers who do best are not the ones with the fanciest resumes, they are the reliable ones who show up, get a certification when they can, stay reachable, and are honest about what they can do.

Register with two or three agencies, keep your availability current, say yes to those early assignments, and treat every shift as the interview for the next, better one. Do that, and agency work stops being a stopgap and becomes a genuine path, to better pay, to a certification, and often to the permanent job you actually wanted.

One last piece of advice. If you take only one thing from this guide, make it this: be the worker who is easy to place and impossible to forget for the right reasons. Show up, be honest, work safely, keep in touch, and say yes to the chances to prove yourself. Skills and certifications matter and are worth getting, but the reputation you build shift by shift is what actually moves you from occasional work to a steady, well-paid role. That reputation costs nothing to start building, and you can begin on your very first assignment.

When agencies hire the most. Timing can work in your favour. Warehousing and logistics ramp up hard before peak retail seasons, so late summer through autumn is often when agencies are hiring most heavily for the run-up to the holidays, and again around other seasonal surges. If you register a few weeks ahead of a peak rather than during it, you are in the pool before the rush and more likely to get steady hours through it. Trades demand runs on project and shutdown cycles instead, but the principle is the same: get registered and reliable before the busy period, not in the middle of it.

Ready to start? Trimax Employment places warehouse, logistics, light-industrial and skilled-trades workers into steady roles across all major Canadian cities, and every worker is verified through Trimax Verify so you arrive set up to succeed. It is free to register, and we will match you to real openings with real employers. Fill out the contact form to join the Trimax talent pool and get to work.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does it cost anything to use a staffing agency in Canada?

No. In Ontario it is illegal for a staffing agency to charge a worker a fee to find them work, under the Employment Standards Act rules for temporary help agencies. The agency is paid by the company that needs workers. If any agency asks you for money to register, be placed, or buy training, it is not operating legally and you should walk away.

Who pays me when I work through a staffing agency?

The agency, not the company whose site you work at. For a temporary placement the agency is your legal employer: it pays you (usually weekly by direct deposit), makes your income tax, CPP and EI deductions, and stays your employer between assignments. The client company only directs your work on site.

What rights do I have as an agency worker?

The same core rights as any employee. You are entitled to at least the $17.60 minimum wage, overtime after 44 hours, public holiday and vacation pay, the right to refuse unsafe work, and protection from reprisal for exercising any right. The agency must also give you written information about the assignment, including your wage rate.

How do I register with a staffing agency?

Bring proof you can work in Canada, government photo ID, your SIN, banking details for direct deposit, and any certifications you hold. Registration is free and usually takes under an hour. Give accurate availability, register with two or three agencies to widen your options, and keep your details current so coordinators can reach you when shifts come up.

What is the difference between temp, temp-to-hire and permanent placement?

Temporary work is short-term or seasonal, with the agency paying you and the assignment ending on a set date. Temp-to-hire lets a company hire you permanently after a trial period, a strong route to a permanent job. Direct placement puts you straight into a permanent role. In Ontario a company can generally hire you directly after six months without paying the agency a conversion fee.

How do I get better assignments from an agency?

Be reliable above all: show up, on time, for every shift you accept, because coordinators offer the best assignments to workers they trust. Get a certification such as a forklift licence to raise your pay, stay easy to reach and quick to say yes, take the early assignments to build your record, and be honest about your skills. Reliability matters far more than a polished resume.

Can a staffing agency stop a company from hiring me permanently?

No. Under Ontario’s ESA rules for temporary help agencies, an agency cannot prevent a client from hiring you directly, and it generally cannot charge the company a conversion fee once six months have passed since you first started with that client. Temp-to-hire is a common and legitimate route to a permanent job.

Can international students work through a staffing agency?

Yes, if your study permit authorises off-campus work. You can generally work up to 24 hours per week during academic terms and full-time during scheduled breaks (at least seven days), up to 180 days of unlimited work per year. Check the exact condition on your permit and tell your agency your limit. Warehouse and light-industrial shifts flex well around study.

Can work-permit holders and newcomers use staffing agencies?

Generally yes. Open work permit holders can work for most employers; if your permit is employer-specific, confirm agency placements are allowed first, on the IRCC work pages. For newcomers and permanent residents, agency work is one of the quickest ways to build Canadian experience and references, and your work rights are identical to any other worker’s.

Do agency workers get taxes and EI deducted?

Yes. The agency deducts income tax, CPP and EI from your pay just like any employer and remits them for you, so you build EI eligibility and CPP contributions normally. Your pay stub from the agency shows your hours, rate and deductions.

What jobs can I get through a staffing agency?

Most commonly warehouse and logistics roles (pickers, packers, forklift operators, shipper-receivers), skilled trades if you are certified, and light-industrial and manufacturing work, often temp-to-hire. Many entry-level roles need no experience. Check pay for your role and city on the free Job Bank wage tool before accepting.

How do I know if a staffing agency is legitimate?

A legitimate agency is licensed (check Ontario’s public list), never charges you a fee, tells you your rate, hours and location before you accept, and treats your safety as its responsibility. If an agency asks you for money, is unlicensed, or is vague about pay, look elsewhere.

Should I register with more than one agency?

Yes. Each agency works with different companies and different openings, so registering with two or three widens your options and shortens the wait for work. Keep your availability updated with each. There is no penalty for signing up with several, and agencies expect it.