word for temporary assignment

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adjective as in lasting only a short while

Strongest matches

brief , interim , limited , makeshift , momentary , provisional , short-lived , transitory

Strong matches

acting , alternate , ephemeral , fugitive , impermanent , make-do , mortal , passing , perishable , shifting , short , stopgap , substitute , summary , supply , temp , transient , volatile

Weak matches

ad hoc , ad interim , Band-Aid , changeable , evanescent , fleeting , for the time being , fugacious , overnight , pro tem , pro tempore , provisory , slapdash , unfixed , unstable

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Related words.

Words related to temporary are not direct synonyms, but are associated with the word temporary . Browse related words to learn more about word associations.

adjective as in substituting in a role

• pro tempore
• provisional

adjective as in short in time

• instantaneous
• short-lived

adjective as in momentary, passing

• impermanent

adjective as in transient

• disappearing

adjective as in exploratory

• developmental
• experiential
• first stage
• on approval
• preliminary
• preparatory
• probationary
• speculative
• trial and error
• unconcluded
• under probation

Viewing 5 / 34 related words

Example Sentences

Officials and experts have said it makes sense to vaccinate even those temporary residents, as it still protects the rest of the community.

People think that recessions are temporary, but they’re not.

GameStop frenzy leaves behind a mess for Wall Street regulators“There are currently no temporary limits to increasing your positions,” stated Robinhood’s investing webpage as of Thursday morning.

The city was the first in the state to introduce a measure requiring some grocery retailers to give workers a temporary hourly pay bump during the pandemic.

Even so, some Oceanside residents have questioned how a seemingly temporary District 1 resident can represent them on the City Council, and whether the process short-changed others running for the seat.

The bill, which passed Congress without opposition, is only a temporary fix and expires in 2015.

Workers built a temporary rail track through the city to move the statue in a process that took three days.

On Monday, de Blasio called for a temporary halt to protests until after the funerals of the two slain officers.

This month a judge intervened and granted a 30-day temporary stay on police action against Abbott.

Or are the risks so great that a temporary ban is necessary?

It was only a hut of rough boards, carelessly knocked together for a shepherd's temporary home.

But her attention was all absorbed by the swiftly executed act by which Garnache had gained at least a temporary advantage.

Close to the wagon in which our hero lay the natives had erected a temporary hut of grass, about six feet high.

Industrial society is therefore mobile, elastic, standing at any moment in a temporary and unstable equilibrium.

For these plays were not the work of a professional writer, but the recreation of a (temporary) professional soldier.

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On this page you'll find 82 synonyms, antonyms, and words related to temporary, such as: brief, interim, limited, makeshift, momentary, and provisional.

From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.

Synonyms of assignment

• as in lesson
• as in appointment
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Thesaurus Definition of assignment

Synonyms & Similar Words

• responsibility
• undertaking
• requirement
• designation
• appointment
• authorization
• installment
• installation
• destination
• emplacement
• investiture
• singling (out)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• dethronement

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun assignment contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of assignment are chore , duty , job , stint , and task . While all these words mean "a piece of work to be done," assignment implies a definite limited task assigned by one in authority.

When is it sensible to use chore instead of assignment ?

While the synonyms chore and assignment are close in meaning, chore implies a minor routine activity necessary for maintaining a household or farm.

When is duty a more appropriate choice than assignment ?

Although the words duty and assignment have much in common, duty implies an obligation to perform or responsibility for performance.

When might job be a better fit than assignment ?

The synonyms job and assignment are sometimes interchangeable, but job applies to a piece of work voluntarily performed; it may sometimes suggest difficulty or importance.

When could stint be used to replace assignment ?

In some situations, the words stint and assignment are roughly equivalent. However, stint implies a carefully allotted or measured quantity of assigned work or service.

When can task be used instead of assignment ?

The meanings of task and assignment largely overlap; however, task implies work imposed by a person in authority or an employer or by circumstance.

Thesaurus Entries Near assignment

assignments

Cite this Entry

“Assignment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/assignment. Accessed 11 Apr. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on assignment

Nglish: Translation of assignment for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of assignment for Arabic Speakers

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Temporary assignments and pay

Q. What is the difference between a temporary promotion and a temporary detail?

A. A temporary promotion is intended to meet the temporary needs of an agency’s work needs when those services can’t be met by other means. To be temporarily promoted, an employee has to meet the same qualification requirements that are needed for the permanent promotion. He or she receives the higher graded salary for the period assigned and gains quality experience and time-in-grade at the higher grade level. The 120 days can be made noncompetitively. In other words, the employee doesn’t have to compete with other employees for the temporary assignment. A detail is the temporary assignment of an employee to a different position or set of duties for a specified period when the employee is expected to return to his/her regular duties at the end of the assignment. An employee who is on detail is considered for pay and FTE purposes to be permanently occupying his or her regular position. Therefore, there is no change to the employee’s grade or salary while serving on the detail (even though the duties associated with the detail opportunity may be classified at a higher or lower grade level than the employee’s current position).

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Reg Jones was head of retirement and insurance policy at the Office of Personnel Management. Email your retirement-related questions to [email protected] .

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can an employee be temp detailed to a set of duties for 120 days and then temp promoted to a successor position for 120 days?

To the best of my knowledge, the answer is yes. If one of our readers has better information, let us know.

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Example sentences temporary assignment

You could commit to help if you view it as a temporary assignment from the start.

We who believe are here on temporary assignment .

He was experienced but was on a temporary assignment for one month only.

Additional drill instructors may be assigned in the winter season, when there are fewer recruits, or as a temporary assignment for students at the drill instructor school.

Others use temporary assignments, outside contracts and advisory work to get new skills or experience in new industries.

Definition of 'assignment' assignment

Definition of 'temporary' temporary

Related word partners temporary assignment

Browse alphabetically temporary assignment.

• temporary account
• temporary appointment
• temporary arrangement
• temporary assignment
• temporary ban
• temporary basis
• temporary blindness
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Finding the Right Compensation for Temporary Assignments

ANNOUNCEMENT - Thank you for your interest in WorldatWork.  We are currently experiencing a temporary issue with e-commerce.  Our team is working to resolve.  For immediate order placement, please contact our Customer Support Team -  email at  [email protected]  or Call U.S & Canada  1-877-951- 9191 , Outside U.S & Canada 1-480-951-9191.    We apologize for the inconvenience.

• Determine the criticalness of the assignment. There are various instances where an organization will need to temporarily fill a role, and how they go about compensating the employee assigned to the temporary role should be preset and determined on how critical it is to the business.  
• Filling in for an employee on leave. In a scenario in which an employee goes on leave and a person is asked to take over their job responsibilities for a defined time, a compensation bump should be added as a premium in the form of a line item of pay with their typical paycheck. 
• Put a formal process in place. Having an established process makes good business sense because when an employee takes on a new role for a period of time, exercising the same responsibilities as the employee on leave, they should have the same pay opportunity. 
• Quick-fix scenarios. Some work scenarios are more difficult to formalize a compensation structure for temporary assignments, such as an employee in a call center not showing up for work for an extended period without notice. Employees who fill in when needed should receive other reward items such as free lunches or gift cards that say “thank you” for picking up the additional workload. 

Temporary assignments, or the assignment of duties to an employee outside their regular scope on a short-term basis, often come with an increase in direct compensation. 

But how should that amount be determined? 

It all depends on whether the assignment is for a new project or simply a fill-in for a missing employee, said Julian Pawlowski, senior principal at Mercer. 

“[Temporary assignments] are common practice in the context of a major project and typically involve an additional scope of responsibility,” he said. 

On the other hand, with constant organizational changes, such as a promotion or other employee transitions such as maternity/medical leave, organizations may need to assign an employee to a temporary role to both support that transition and any gaps in the workflow that a change creates. 

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“Some roles have less influence on results and pay should be commensurate with that,” he said. 

Therefore, leaders must first determine the criticalness of the assignment to the business, Pawlowski said.  

“What will be the impact if someone’s not in place?” he said. “There really has to be a discussion about the risk if the project isn’t completed on time. What’s the risk if no one is covering that person’s responsibilities? Risk must be determined up front.” 

With core strategic projects, for example, there typically are very defined project plans with dependencies and outcomes so that organizations understand the scope of work that’s occurring and the employee understands the part of the workflow and outcome they are responsible for. 

From an administrative perspective, this should include an assignment letter, a plan document explaining the terms and conditions of the program, the award amount, timing and any actions that occur if a person leaves.  

“All that should be in place before the project begins so they are clear about what they are eligible for, how they earn it and when they earn it.”  

But the extra compensation — paid out at the completion of preset milestones — should not just be based on an individual’s performance, Pawlowski said.  

“There’s the participant’s support and input that should be measured individually, but also the team’s outcome,” he said. “So a composite score should determine that temporary assignment’s compensation range.” 

In a scenario in which an employee goes on leave and a person is asked to take over their job responsibilities for a defined  time, however, the compensation bump should be added as a premium — a line item of pay with their typical paycheck. 

“That way the person is recognized immediately for the time and work done, and reinforces the idea that the person is getting the opportunity and extra money immediately,” Pawlowski said. “It really helps with both employee motivation and retention.” 

Formalizing the Process 

For McKesson Canada and its 4,500 employees, temporary assignments that last a minimum of three months occur often enough that the company has a formal process in place. 

Isabelle Brissette, a McKesson Canada compensation consultant, noted the company had 29 temporary assignments for the past fiscal year. “Some of our maternity/parental leaves can last up to 18 months,” she said. 

Having a formal process in place makes good business sense, Brisette said, because when an employee takes on a new temporary role, exercising the same responsibilities as the employee on leave, they should have the same pay opportunity.  

McKesson Canada employees on temporary assignments receive a compensation package that al teast matches the new career grade’s minimum salary range, Brisette said. 

For roles in which the employee will take on new responsibilities for three months or more — sometimes up to 18 months to cover maternity/parental leaves — the employee will be placed in the new job code, with the new grade level and get the new bonus target associated with that role. 

Base pay, however, will not be increased.  

“We will put in a temporary bi-weekly premium as a percentage of base,” she said. “This bi-weekly premium usually ranges from 5% to 15%.”  

However, in light of new pay transparency standards , as well as because the employee will have access to the new salary range, McKesson ensures that the bi-weekly premium added to the base pay comes to at least the minimum of the new range. 

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Once the assignment is over, the employee goes back into their regular position and grade level, and the bi-weekly premium stops.  

McKesson has another process for a temporary assignment for extra responsibilities, Brisette said.  

“This is where an employee would remain in their current role but take on responsibilities from a colleague or a superior who is on leave for an unknown period of time (short-term leave, jury duty, etc.).” 

In these cases, she said, compensation is simply made by a lump-sum payment. 

Other Scenarios 

Some work scenarios, however, are more difficult to formalize a compensation structure for temporary assignments, Mercer’s Pawlowski noted.  

“Maybe there’s an employee in a call center who doesn’t show up or leaves unexpectedly and the remaining team picks up the workload,” he said. “That’s fairly common and there needs to be consideration in other areas beside direct compensation.”  

Employees who fill in when needed should receive other reward items such as free lunches or gift cards that say “thank you” for picking up the additional workload. 

“That’s a really important detail,” Pawlowski said. “There are many cases where it’s not formalized and there are gaps in the work and workers still need to pick up the slack.” 

Editor’s Note: Additional Content 

For more information and resources related to this article see the pages below, which offer quick access to all WorldatWork content on these topics: 

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• Organizational Performance   

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