body shop

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Meaning · English

A consultancy that recruits workers (generally in information technology) in order to contract out their services on a tactical short- to mid-term basis.

Register: slang

Where it’s used: Used American English

Examples

Flouting employment discrimination laws, unethical body shops blatantly advertise in US publications for jobs that clearly target foreign nationals.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “body shop” mean?

A consultancy that recruits workers (generally in information technology) in order to contract out their services on a tactical short- to mid-term basis.

Is “body shop” formal or informal?

body shop is generally slang.