The REC is calling for the current enforcement mechanism for the recruitment sector to be protected and enhanced.

Recently, the REC stated that it was against any extension of the Gangmaster Licensing regulations and pointed out that there were more effective methods to raise standards.

The Confederation said that government must not burden recruitment agencies with further costs and red tape when the sector is trying to get to grips with the AWR and upcoming reform of pensions. The recruitment sector is already one of the most heavily regulated of all the service industries.

There was licensing regime in the UK’s recruitment industry until 1996 and the REC says it didn’t work. Whilst they support the GLA aims, there are real questions as to how successful it has been in eliminating rogue providers.

There are concerns however that public sector spending cuts could impact on areas such as the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate.

Tom Hadley from the REC said that the organisation has repeatedly called on Government to provide effective enforcement of the current regulations. He believes that dismantling the current regime would not offer the protection necessary for law-abiding businesses and workers.

The REC thinks that addressing bad practice and enhancing standards within the industry is essential and it welcomes the coalition’s steer to ensure inspections are targeted properly.

Kevin Green, the Chief Executive of the REC, recently wrote to Vince Cable calling for the EAS to be strengthened.

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: alot like LOVE. by Jason Clapp

Vince Cable has pledged to review the incoming agency workers directive but some employers are warning him not to jeopardise a deal that was previously agreed with the unions.

The CBI and the TUC brokered an agreement stating that temporary workers will get the same pay and working conditions as their permanent counterparts after they have been in a job for 12 weeks. The unions had originally demanded this equality as from day one.

The concern amongst businesses is that if the regulations are changed this could infuriate the unions who will then abandon the 12 week deal and return to their demands for equality from day one.

Business leaders say that giving temporary PAYE workers equal rights from day one will cost company’s more and therefore they will hire fewer temps. And yet one of the attractive features of our labour market is its flexibility. Businesses can respond quickly and effectively to market changes without the need to make a long-term commitment.

Everybody wants to see red tape and bureaucracy reduced so it is imperative that any changes are carefully thought out.

The hospitality industry uses a lot of temps to help out during peak periods and the chief of HR at the Thistle hotel group, Christian Armstrong, said they would think twice about hiring workers from agencies if equal rights kicked in right from the start.

The chairman of the Association of Recruitment Consultants, Adrian Marlowe, said that business leaders were being unnecessarily cautious and that his Association wants the 12 week rule to be more logical and equitable, rather than abolished.

The AWR have to be implemented into UK law by November 2011.

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: Don’t Mess With Me by dreamerlines

Contractors and freelancers with their own limited company, as well as interim workers who use the services of a PAYE umbrella company could soon discover exactly where they sit under the Agency Workers Directive.

The REC has requested formal discussions with key members of the new coalition government, including both Vince Cable and Edward Davey, who now take up the role of secretary of state for business and business minister respectively.

According to the REC, one of the government’s first tasks should be a full and comprehensive impact assessment of the forthcoming Agency Workers Directive and in particular the important role that contractors, freelancers and temporary workers play within the UK economy.

A spokesperson from the REC said that the entire freelance marketplace is under threat from being over regulated. Both recruiters, contractors and umbrella companies are already struggling under the weight of excessive legislation and red tape.

The REC will make representations to new MPs over the coming months in an attempt to safeguard the future of the flexible labour market in this country.

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: Hope by herby_fr

Following it’s successful ‘on the road’ tour, the REC has stepped up it’s campaign to educate recruiters and clients about the impact of the forthcoming Agency Worker’s Directive.

Under the new regulations, which were laid before parliament in January, contractors and temps will be receive the same employment rights as permanent workers after completing twelve weeks work.

The AWD has been met with widespread criticism from all parties in the freelance chain and many, including limited company contractors and umbrella companies, are still not entirely sure if they fall into scope.

The next stage of the REC’s campaign will focus on AWD compliance and in particular the impact of administration on the recruitment industry.

A spokesperson from the REC said that it was imperative that recruiters work closely with paying clients over the coming months in an attempt to address the common misconceptions about the AWR, which are due to come into effect  in October 2011. 

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: Caught in the headlights by andres.thor

Contractors, recruiters and umbrella companies across the country would have been pleased by the official growth rate figures, released yesterday.

According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), the UK Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 0.2% during the first quarter of 2010. This is slightly down on the 0.5% figure predicted by many financial commentators, but still heading in the right direction, particularly since some economists anticipated a double-dip recession.

The ONS revealed that the positive growth rate was largely attributable to the financial sector and business services, although both utilities and the manufacturing also boasted encouraging growth figures despite the bad weather at the beginning of the 2010.

A spokesperson from The British Chambers of Commerce said that although a positive GDP should please the majority of SMEs, the growth rates were still lower than expected and are another sign of the challenges facing the UK economy.

With only 2 weeks to go until the general election, the possibility of a hung parliament is still very much a possibility. Yet regardless of who wins, the next 18 months are expected to be pretty painful for most in the freelance marketplace, with wide scale public cost cutting and the prospect of more legislation in the form of the Agency Workers Directive.

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: The Happy Camper by spunkinator

The REC will continue it’s whistle-stop tour of the UK next week when it visits recruiters and umbrella companies based in the south of England.

The ‘On The Road’ UK tour has been set-up as part of an on-going plan by the REC to better educate it’s members about the issues facing recruitment in this country, and how they can prepare themselves for the challenges that lie ahead.

One of the items that will be discussed next week is forthcoming implementation of the Agency Workers Directive, which seeks to give temporary workers certain employment rights after 12 weeks of work. The workshops will unveil a new range of products and services developed by the REC to assist it’s members with AWD compliance, and in particular how they can streamline administration when dealing with PAYE umbrella companies and paying clients.

Chief executive of the REC, Kevin Green, will host Q&A sessions in both Brighton and Southampton, which will also tackle subjects such as employment law and the wider economy. There are still places available for the Southampton event and bookings can be made via the REC’s website.

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: AHO 022 Ocean North lecture by watz

With full implementation of the Agency Workers Directive less than 20 months away, the REC has announced that it will issue new guidance to help recruiters, contractors and umbrella companies ensure their businesses are compliant in time for October 2011.

There has been widespread concern within the industry about the fall out of the new regulations and how they will affect the contractor / recruiter and contractor / client relationship. Many fear that paying clients will insist that contractors work PAYE regardless of their employment status while others think that IR35 will feature prominently when trying to determine whether someone is captured by the AWD or not.

Since the proposed regulations were published, the REC has been working tirelessly with BIS, the government and the recruitment community as a whole to ensure it’s members are ready for ‘A’ day. Over the next 12 months, it will conduct a series of workshops to promote client awareness and produce agency tool kits which will include, amongst other things, example contracts for both inside and outside AWD assignments.

The REC’s telephone service has already seen a recent surge in the number of enquiries from concerned recruiters. The online forums are also providing tangible evidence that both umbrella companies and limited company contractors are feeling equally as nervous about the road ahead.

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: 25/12/2006 (Day 25) – Minifig by Kaptain Kobold

More confusion exists over the Agency Workers Directive (AWD), this time for limited company contractors.

Some people believe that the AWD will exclude contractors that are working through their own limited company, while many in the industry now fear that this is not the case.

Adrian Marlowe from the Association of Recruitment Consultancies believes that the real test of whether an individual is captured by the AWD will rest on whether or not they are truly in business in their own account, and hence operating outside of IR35.

He predicts that agencies will need to verify whether a contractor actually has their own business, rather than simply operating through a limited company. This of course is likely to cause further administration for agencies although the Government are expected to provide guidelines to assist them. Umbrella companies, used by thousands of interim recruiters, are almost certainly inside the scope of AWD.

Recruiters are already facing problems with the impending implementation of the AWD and the planned increase in NICs. Steve Huxham, the chairman of the Recruitment Society is calling on the Government to freeze new employment legislation. He believes that the proposed measures are not helping reduce the unemployment rate.

Mr Huxham has suggested that the unemployment problem could be resolved if every small business was able to hire a couple of extra members of staff.

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: Target by wili_hybrid

Since the Agency Workers Directive was published last week, various professional organisations have voiced their concerns.

The SPA, which represents some of the biggest umbrella companies in the UK is spearheading a new campaign to further awareness of the various different types of worker operating within the flexible marketplace.

Stuart Davis, who is Chairman of SPA has claimed that the BIS’ response to the Agency Workers Directive reveals a worrying lack of understanding with regards to the freelancing in the UK.

He is also calling on the government for greater differentiation between self employed individuals, limited company contractors and those that work through umbrella companies.

Davis believes that the new regulations are yet another piece of ill informed legislation that risks damaging the flexible labour market. Of course these new regulations are yet to be fully carved in stone. The AWD are not due to be implemented until after 1 October 2011 and we could have a new government then.

© 2010 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: Break Free by nickwheeleroz

There appears to be more confusion over the timing of the implementation of the Agency Workers Directive (AWD), which many are concerned could have far reaching implications for umbrella companies and contractors that work through their own limited company.

The government had pledged to refrain from implementing the AWD until October 2011 and yet it now seems they are keen to have it in place before the dissolution of parliament. In parliament recently Chris Mullin, MP for Sunderland South, asked Pat McFadden about his plans for implementation of the AWD.

Mullin pointed out that he felt the matter hadn’t been properly thought out and may well have been rushed through before dissolution.

At this point John Penrose, the Shadow Minister for Business, challenged McFadden saying that the government had previously expressed it’s intention delay full implementation of the AWD until the last possible date under European Law.  He also asked whether the government could reassure interested parties that they do in fact have the best interests of the country in mind.

McFadden replied by saying that, in bringing forward the AWD, the government are simply abiding by TUC-CBI agreement and that voters would have the opportunity to make their feelings know at the forthcoming general election.

In light of this debate, it is now clear is that the government is keen to gets things moving and have a blueprint in place as soon as possible in an attempt to reduce the uncertainty within the UK recruitment market. They will shortly be releasing their response to the recent consultation document and it is believed that this will clear up many of the issues raised by the industry.

© 2009 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Image: Into the fog by raindog