I've seen this done before. As others pointed out, the lack of health insurance can be a problem in the U.S., although sometimes can be mitigated if the candidate still has access via COBRA.
Even considering the flaws, I think this approach is better than immediately hiring someone full time. I've seen some candidates who seemed perfect on paper and fine in interviews and then turned out to be utterly toxic to actually work with. For the interviewee, the chances of encountering that situation are even greater, since there is one interviewee but typically many future coworkers.
Some personality traits can be very difficult to surface in an interview environment. IMO interviews are worthless for getting that kind of information.
Even considering the flaws, I think this approach is better than immediately hiring someone full time. I've seen some candidates who seemed perfect on paper and fine in interviews and then turned out to be utterly toxic to actually work with. For the interviewee, the chances of encountering that situation are even greater, since there is one interviewee but typically many future coworkers.
Some personality traits can be very difficult to surface in an interview environment. IMO interviews are worthless for getting that kind of information.