Basis of Accounting, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Basis of Presentation

We have prepared the accompanying consolidated financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”). In the opinion of management, the accompanying consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments of a normal recurring nature that are necessary for a fair presentation of the results for the periods presented.

These consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes included in our Annual Report filed on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021. Results for the interim periods presented are not necessarily indicative of the results expected for the full year or for any other period.

Use of Estimates, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Significant estimates and assumptions underlie our workers’ compensation claim liabilities, our workers’ compensation risk management incentive program accrual, our deferred taxes, the reserve for losses on notes receivable, and the estimated fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed.

Revenue [Policy Text Block]

Revenue Recognition

Our primary source of revenue comes from royalty fees based on the operation of our franchised offices. Royalty fees from our HireQuest Direct business model are based on a percentage of sales for services our franchisees provide to customers, which ranges from 6% to 8%. Royalty fees from our HireQuest business line, including HireQuest franchisees, DriverQuest franchisees, the Northbound franchise, and Snelling and Link franchisees who executed new franchise agreements upon closing, are 4.5% of the payroll we fund plus 18% of the gross margin for the territory. Royalty fees from the Snelling and Link franchise agreements assumed and not renegotiated at closing range from 5.0% to 8.0% of sales for services our franchisees provide to customers. Our franchisees are responsible for taking customer orders, providing customers with services, establishing the prices charged for services, and controlling other aspects related to providing service to customers prior to the service being transferred to the customer, such as determining which temporary employees to dispatch to the customer and establishing pay rates for the temporary employees. Accordingly, we present revenue from franchised locations on a net basis as agent as opposed to a gross basis as principal. With company owned locations, we control the conditions under which we provide services to customers. Accordingly, we present revenue from owned locations on a gross basis as principal. In addition to royalty fees, we also charge a license fee to some locations that utilize our intellectual property that are not franchisees. License fees are 9% of the gross margin for the location.

For franchised locations, we recognize revenue when we satisfy our performance obligations. Our performance obligations primarily take the form of a franchise license and promised services. Promised services consist primarily of paying temporary employees, completing all statutory payroll related obligations, and providing workers' compensation insurance on behalf of temporary employees. Because these performance obligations are interrelated, we do not consider them to be individually distinct and therefore account for them as a single performance obligation. Because our franchisees receive and consume the benefits of our services simultaneously, our performance obligations are satisfied when our services are provided. Franchise royalties are billed on a weekly basis. We also offer various incentive programs for franchisees including royalty incentives, royalty credits, and other support initiatives. These incentives and credits are provided to encourage new office development and organic growth, and to limit workers' compensation exposure. We present franchise royalty fees net of these incentives and credits.

For owned locations, we account for revenue when both parties to the contract have approved the contract, the rights and obligations of the parties are identified, payment terms are identified, and collectability of consideration is probable. Revenue derived from owned locations is recognized at the time we satisfy our performance obligation. Our contracts have a single performance obligation, which is the transfer of services. Because our customers receive and consume the benefits of our services simultaneously, our performance obligations are satisfied when our services are provided. Revenue from owned locations is reported net of customer credits, discounts, and taxes collected from customers that are remitted to taxing authorities. Our customers are invoiced every week and we do not require payment prior to the delivery of service. Substantially all of our contracts include payment terms of 30 days or less and are short-term in nature. Because of our payment terms with our customers, there are no significant contract assets or liabilities. We do not extend payment terms beyond one year.

Below are summaries of our franchise royalties disaggregated by business model (in thousands):

	*Three months ended*
	*March 31, 2022*		*March 31, 2021*
HireQuest Direct	$	3,532	$	2,906
HireQuest, Snelling, DriverQuest, & Northbound		3,041		353
Total	$	6,573	$	3,259

Service revenue, which forms the other component of our total revenue, consists of interest we charge our franchisees on overdue customer accounts receivable, trademark license fees, and other fees for optional services we provide. We recognize interest income based on the effective interest rate applied to the outstanding principal balance of overdue accounts. We recognize revenue from trademark license fees as we earn them. We recognize revenue from optional services as we provide them.

Goodwill and Intangible Assets, Intangible Assets, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Intangible Assets

Intangible assets acquired are recorded at fair value. We test our finite-lived intangible assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the assets may not be recoverable. We test our indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment annually or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the assets may not be recoverable. If the carrying value exceeds the fair value, we recognize an impairment in an amount equal to the excess, not to exceed the carrying value. Management uses considerable judgment to determine key assumptions, including projected revenue, royalty rates and appropriate discount rates. There were no intangible asset impairment charges in 2022 or 2021.

Finite-lived intangible assets are amortized using the straight-line method over their estimated useful lives, which ranges from 7 to 15 years. Our finite-lived intangible assets include acquired franchise agreements, acquired customer lists, and purchased software. Our indefinite-lived intangible assets include an acquired domain name. For additional information related to significant additions to intangible assets, see Note 2 - Acquisitions.

Intangible assets internally developed are measured at cost. We capitalize costs to develop or purchase computer software for internal use which are incurred during the application development stage. These costs include fees paid to third parties for development services and payroll costs for employees' time spent developing the software. We expense costs when incurred during the preliminary project stage and the post-implementation stage. Capitalized development costs will be amortized on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the software. The capitalization and ongoing assessment of recoverability of development costs requires considerable judgment by management with respect to certain external factors, including, but not limited to, technological and economic feasibility, and estimated economic life.

The table below reflects information related to our intangible assets (in thousands).

				*March 31, 2022*						*December 31, 2021*
	*Estimated useful life*		*Gross*		*Accumulated amortization*			*Net*		*Gross*		*Accumulated amortization*			*Net*
Finite-lived intangible assets:
Franchise agreements		15 years	$	19,916	$	(1,418	)	$	18,498	$	19,916	$	(1,068	)	$	18,848
Customer lists		10 years		3,034		(62	)		2,972		2,089		(239	)		1,850
Purchased software		7 years		3,200		(229	)		2,971		3,200		(114	)		3,086
Internally developed software		7 years		1,079		-			1,079		916		-			916
Total finite-lived intangible assets				27,229		(1,709	)		25,520		26,121		(1,421	)		24,700
Indefinite-lived intangible assets:
Domain name		Indefinite		2,226		-			2,226		2,226		-			2,226
Trade name		Indefinite		1,511		-			1,511		-		-			-
Total intangible assets			$	30,966	$	(1,709	)	$	29,257	$	28,347	$	(1,421	)	$	26,926

Fair Value Measurement, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Fair Value Measures

Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset, or paid to transfer a liability, in the principal or most advantageous market for the asset or liability in an ordinary transaction between market participants on the measurement date. Our policy on fair value measures requires us to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs when measuring fair value. The policy establishes a fair value hierarchy based on the level of independent, objective evidence surrounding the inputs used to measure fair value. A financial instrument’s categorization within the fair value hierarchy is based upon the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. The policy prioritizes the inputs into three levels that may be used to measure fair value:

Level 1: Applies to assets or liabilities for which there are quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 2: Applies to assets or liabilities for which there are inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets; quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in markets with insufficient volume or infrequent transactions (less active markets); or model-derived valuations in which significant inputs are observable or can be derived principally from, or corroborated by, observable market data.

Level 3: Applies to assets or liabilities for which there are unobservable inputs to the valuation methodology that are significant to the measurement of the fair value of the assets or liabilities.

The carrying amounts of cash, accounts receivable, accounts payable and all other current liabilities approximate fair values due to their short-term nature. The fair value of notes receivable approximates the net book value and balances are reviewed for impairment at least annually. The fair value of the term loan payable approximates its carrying value. The fair value of impaired notes receivable are determined based on estimated future payments discounted back to present value using the notes effective interest rate.

	*March 31, 2022*
Description	*Total*		*Level 1*		*Level 2*		*Level 3*
Cash	$	1,826	$	1,826	$	-	$	-
Notes receivable		4,322		-		4,322		-
Accounts receivable		41,300		-		41,300		-
Notes receivable - impaired		140		-				140
Total assets at fair value	$	47,588	$	1,826	$	45,622	$	140

Term loan payable	$	4,513	$	-	$	4,513	$	-
Line of credit		5,464		-		5,464		-
Total liabilities at fair value	$	9,977	$	-	$	9,977	$	-

	*December 31, 2021*
Description	*Total*		*Level 1*		*Level 2*		*Level 3*
Cash	$	1,256	$	1,256	$	-	$	-
Notes receivable		4,027		-		4,027		-
Accounts receivable		38,239		-		38,239		-
Notes receivable - impaired		140		-				140
Total assets at fair value	$	43,662	$	1,256	$	42,266	$	140

Term loan payable	$	3,066	$	-	$	3,066	$	-
Line of credit		171		-		171		-
Total liabilities at fair value	$	3,237	$	-	$	3,237	$	-

For additional information related to our impaired notes receivable, see Note 10 - Notes Receivable.

Postemployment Benefit Plans, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Savings Plan

We have a savings plan that qualifies under Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code. Under our 401(k) plan, eligible employees may contribute a portion of their pre-tax earnings, subject to certain limitations. As a benefit, we match 100% of each employee’s first 3% of contributions, then 50% of each employee’s contribution beyond 3%, up to a maximum match of 4% of the employee’s eligible earnings. Matching expense related to our savings plan totaled approximately $13 thousand and 11 thousand during the quarter ended March 31, 2022 and March 31, 2021, respectively.