From the beginning of October new regulations come into play relating to the engagement of agency temporary workers. These regulations are the result of the 2008 EU Temporary Agency Work Directive.
Who do they apply to?
Workers who are provided to an employer via an agency, and who have 12 weeks continuous service, with the period of service starting on or after 1st October 2011 will have protection under the regulations. A couple of the provisions will apply regardless of the length of engagement. The rules will apply even if an agency worker works for more than one agency. Breaks in service will not affect the 12 week qualification rule unless they are for not less than 6 weeks.
What do they do?
As soon as an agency worker starts with an employer they are entitled to information about vacancies within the hiring organisation so they have the same opportunity as other workers to find permanent employment and equal access to on-site facilities such as child care, canteen and transport services.
After 12 week’s service the agency worker will be entitled to equality of treatment for pay. This will include basic pay, overtime, shift and unsocial hours payments, bonuses related to performance, but not one-off bonus schemes. Excluded from the definition of pay are company sick pay schemes and pensions. In addition, agency workers are entitled to parity of treatment with employees in the areas of:
- duration of working time e.g. if working is limited to a maximum of 48 hours a week;
- night work;
- rest periods;
- rest breaks;
- annual leave;
- paid time off for ante natal appointments.
If agency workers are not treated in accordance with the regulations then both the agency and the employer are both liable. Potentially this could result in a claim being taken to Tribunal.
What should my business consider?
You should have processes in place to provide the agency with sufficient information to enable them to set the terms of engagement appropriately. Even if terms change, such as due to a general pay rise, you should have procedures in place to notify the agency so that the necessary changes can be made to the agency worker’s pay.
Commercially one effect of these regulations will mean that the margin made by agencies will become more transparent and it may well lead to some employers recruiting staff directly on a temporary basis. Time will tell if that happens to any significant degree.
Employers may also wish to consider how long they recruit agency workers for. The significant provisions do not apply for the first 12 weeks of an engagement and so there may be benefit in restricting engagement to 12 weeks, although the costs of extension need to be weighed against the costs of retraining a new agency worker.
Further information:
This guide is reasonably brief, so if you would like more information on this topic, please contact us for more detailed information relating to your organisation.