Independent Contractor Services Blog

As we said in our last article, we would update our news page with any developments with regards to the Agency Workers Directive. The Agency Workers Regulations, which implement the Agency Workers Directive, have now been published and confirm that implementation will not begin until after 1 October 2011.  

The document is available on the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills website and can be downloaded here. The document comes in response to the consultation on draft regulations.  

Recruiter have summarised the report and confirmed that the government’s response to consultation is as follows;

• Agency workers placed with an end-user for 12 weeks or more will be entitled to the terms and conditions that would have applied if they been recruited as permanent employees. They will also be entitled to the same terms and conditions as comparable permanent employees.
• Eligible agency workers will be entitled to equal treatment in terms of “working time” provisions, such as holiday and rest breaks, as well as ‘pay’.
• ‘Pay’ now has a wider definition than proposed in the draft Regulations. While occupational benefits such as pension contributions, sick pay and maternity pay will not amount to pay, some bonuses that relate directly to the quality or quantity of work performed will need to be extended to agency workers.
• Breaks of less than six weeks between assignments will not reset the 12 week qualifying period. The Regulations also introduces a new anti-avoidance provision. If it appears that assignments have been structured in a particular way to try and stop an agency worker from acquiring rights under the Regulations, an award of up to £5,000 may be payable.
• Agencies will be liable for claims if an agency worker has not received equal treatment. However, liability could move to the end user if it has not supplied the agency information about the relevant working and employment conditions.

Filed under: Contractor News