The legislation will also ensure that agency workers will be entitled to bonuses like their permanent colleagues and that unscrupulous employers will not be able to move agency staff from one job to another, before the 12 week qualifying period for equal treatment.

As well as equal pay, holidays and basic working conditions, agency workers will also get equal access to childcare and transport facilities.

North West TUC Regional Secretary Alan Manning said: “This is great news for agency workers in our Region. The Government has made a significant step towards securing a fair deal for agency staff and stamping out some of the worst abuses.

‘While we are naturally disappointed that the protection will not start immediately, it now looks certain to become enshrined in legislation before the next General Election. We would like to thank everyone in the North West who has supported our campaign - it has helped secure another real advance for people at work.”

Below is the full text of a press release issued by BIS, the Department for Business Innovation and Skills:

21 January 2010
FAIRNESS FOR AGENCY WORKERS, FLEXIBILITY FOR EMPLOYERS

Legislation to give Britain’s 1.3 million agency workers important new rights was laid before Parliament today.

As agreed in 2008 by the TUC and CBI, the changes will give agency workers the right to the same pay, holidays and other basic working conditions as directly recruited staff after 12 weeks in a given job.

Commenting on the Agency Workers Regulations 2010, which implement an EU directive, Business Minister Pat McFadden said:

“This change in the law is aimed at ensuring fairness for agency workers in relation to the permanent employees they work alongside. They are being implemented in line with the TUC / CBI agreement which sought to ensure fairness while maintaining flexibility for the UK labour market – a very important factor in our ability to create jobs.

“It is only by engaging in the mainstream of Europe, actively influencing proposals and securing hard won agreements that we have been able to deliver a sensible and balanced package.”

Laying the Regulations today delivers on the Government’s commitment to get them on the Statute Book before the end of this Parliament.  It will also give agencies, hirers and agency workers time to prepare and plan before the law comes into force next year.

In 2008 the Government secured a deal in Europe on the Agency Workers Directive that allowed Britain’s rules to be based on an agreement reached in the UK between the CBI and TUC.

Since then the Government has consulted extensively with stakeholders, launching policy consultations in May and November last year. Over 300 organisations took part, representing all interests – trade unions, employment agencies, business groups and employers of all sizes from both the private and public sectors.  Consultation events were also held across the country, enabling the Government to hear first-hand about the issues at stake.

For the first time agency workers will be entitled to equal treatment on basic working and employment conditions, including pay and holidays, as if they had been recruited directly by the hirer after 12 weeks in a given job. The rights on pay will apply not just to the basic hourly rate, but to all pay for work done, including bonuses that are directly related to the performance of the agency worker personally. But, as set out in the Directive, they will not extend to some of the wider benefits that permanent staff can enjoy in the context of their longer-term relationship with their employer, such as occupational pensions and sick pay.

To ensure that workers are not deprived of their rights by those who would seek to avoid equal treatment the Regulations include provisions that will deal with repeat assignments designed to prevent workers acquiring equal treatment rights. Agencies and hirers will face the prospect of having to pay out up to £5,000 to the worker if an Employment Tribunal finds that these specific anti-avoidance rules have been breached.  And to provide a greater deterrent in low-value cases there will be a general minimum award of two weeks’ pay, subject only to Tribunal discretion if that level of award does not seem reasonable.

Other benefits that agency workers will gain from the first day of their assignment include:

• information about internal vacancies to give them the same opportunity as other workers to find permanent employment; and
• equal access to on-site facilities such as child care and transport services.

Department for Business, Innovation & Skills

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is building a dynamic and competitive UK economy by: creating the conditions for business success; promoting innovation, enterprise and science; and giving everyone the skills and opportunities to succeed. To achieve this it will foster world-class universities and promote an open global economy. BIS - Investing in our future.

According to The Guardian, business minister Pat McFadden is expected to announce that he will ensure the agency workers legislation is passed before the General Election.

He has held meetings with the CBI and the TUC after years of arguments between employers and unions on whether agency workers should be given the same rights as full timers.

Meanwhile, the Conservatives have warned they will repeal, or amend the agency worker regulations if they win the next election.

McFaddden is also reported to support TUC concerns that the draft regulations passed last year did not go far enough to protect UK temporary workers.

The Guardian say it is now expected that regulations will be tightened to prevent employers avoiding the rules by repeatedly shifting agency workers from one job to another, before the 12 week qualifying period for equal treatment. The TUC had raised fears that unscrupulous agency firms would shift workers between jobs within the same workplace, or rotating agency temps on short-term assignments between different employers.The rights for agency workers only apply to those who stay in the same job for 12 weeks.

The regulations will also broaden the definition of pay so that temporary workers’ bonus pay is protected in the same way as full-time workers’ bonus payments.

North West TUC Regional Secretary Alan Manning said:”We will need to study the detail of what is proposed, but if the reports prove correct, this is a major step forward for fair treatment for agency workers.

“For too long, agency staff have been treated as second class citizens, when many do exactly the same job as permanenent staff. All we are campaigning for is fair treatment for agency workers to avoid them being exploited by unscrupulous employers and so that they can enjoy the same rights as permanent staff. It looks as though the Government has listened and will act within the next few months.”

]]> http://www.fairtoagencyworkers.org/2010/01/20/government-to-rush-through-agency-worker-protection/feed http://www.fairtoagencyworkers.org/2010/01/13/real-protection-on-pay-holidays-and-hours-demanded-by-north-west-tuc http://www.fairtoagencyworkers.org/2010/01/13/real-protection-on-pay-holidays-and-hours-demanded-by-north-west-tuc#comments Wed, 13 Jan 2010 10:48:25 +0000 Fair to Agency Workers http://www.fairtoagencyworkers.org/?p=462 AGENCY workers must be given real protection from exploitation and genuine equal treatment on pay, holidays and hours, says the North West TUC.

New rights need to be urgently introduced because agency workers are particularly vulnerable during times of recession, says the TUC in its response to the draft Agency Worker Regulations consultation.

The draft Regulations seek to implement the EU Temporary Agency Worker Directive into UK law.

The TUC wants the Agency Worker Regulations to be strengthened to guarantee that every agency worker receives the same rights on pay, holiday and working time as employed staff doing the same work, following a 12-week qualifying period.

The new Regulations must include more effective anti-avoidance measures to prevent unscrupulous employers and agencies avoiding the new rights by moving agency workers between jobs within the same workplace, or by rotating agency temps on short-term assignments between different employers.

The TUC response highlights how bosses could avoid giving agency temps equal rights, leaving them facing pay discrimination and with less paid holiday.

The response highlights how:

• Agency temps working in a food processing plant could work for 11 weeks picking vegetables, and then be moved to the warehouse for 11 weeks, before being moved back to field work
• Agency workers working in retail distribution could be regularly rotated to work for two different retail firms on the same industrial site

Legal loopholes in the Regulations should also be closed to ensure that rogue employers and agencies do not use bogus self-employment to avoid equal treatment, says the TUC.

NW TUC Regional Secretary Alan Manning said: “A TUC poll earlier this year revealed many agency workers have faced abuse and unfair treatment at work.

“Some rogue employers are using the lack of employment rights and insecurity of agency workers to treat agency temps badly - to pay them less, to give them less holiday pay, to get out of paying them redundancy or maternity pay, and to neglect their training and development.

“Agency workers are even more in need of protection during a recession. Vulnerable workers are always the first to suffer when times are hard. Agency temps must have the right to genuine equal treatment on pay, including basic pay, bonuses, redundancy pay and maternity, paternity and adoption leave pay, and to equal treatment on holiday pay and the ability to take time off.

“The new laws must provide real protection for the thousands of agency workers in the North West. Any loopholes which allow unscrupulous employers to avoid the law and undercut reputable firms must be closed.”

The TUC believes is also time to end the pay gap faced by agency workers in the UK. Agency temps should also have equal treatment on bonuses, performance related pay, maternity, paternity and adoption leave and redundancy pay, says the TUC.

Agency workers should also be entitled to the same access as directly employed staff to workplace facilities such as staff canteens, childcare facilities, transport services, staff toilets, sanitary facilities, and rest rooms.

• The TUC submission to the Government’s consultation on the draft Agency Worker Regulations is available at www.tuc.org.uk/extras/agencyworkerssubmission.pdf
• The TUC and You Gov poll is available at www.tuc.org.uk/extras/agencypoll2009.pdf

Agency workers are being invited to get in touch with their views about their plight and the Government’s commitment to give them the same rights as permanent staff, after 12 weeks in a job, from the end of 2011.

You can put questions about agency working to legal experts between 1pm and 4pm next Thursday.

You can also put your comments or questions in advance, right now at Guardian forum on agency workers

THE Government has given the go-ahead for a new law to protect agency workers in today’s Queen’s Speech.

It has confirmed that it is committed to legislating on the European Union’s Agency Workers Directive.

This follows a joint declaration signed by the TUC and CBI agreeing to a 12-week qualifying period for agency workers to be given equal treatment with permanent staff.

The Government says equal treatment means at least the basic working and employment conditions that would apply if the worker had been recruited to occupy the same job as a permanent member of staff. That means pay, holidays, overtime, breaks, rest periods, night work and duration of working time.

Even if a Bill is approved by the House of Commons before the next General Election, under European law implementation of the Directive is likely to be delayed to the very last minute - 31st December 2011.

AN agency worker has won a bumper pay-out - after an investigation by government watchdogs.

The security guard complained to the Employment Agency Standards (EAS) that he had not been paid for all the hours he worked.

He claimed he was owed money and that he had never been given any terms, conditions or assignment details before he started the temporary job.

EAS Inspectors visited the company to carry out an inspection of their records, interviewed the manager and identified breaches of the regulations which apply to Employment Agencies.

The company was instructed to change their working practices and two days after the visit the company arranged payment of the outstanding money to the security guard.

The case study is one of a number highlighted as poart of a new awareness raising campaign which  the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has launched to inform workers of their rights on pay, deductions and working hours. 

The campaign has been developed in cooperation with employers, trade unions and the different enforcement agencies across Government.

As part of this campaign, a special Pay and Work Rights Helpline 0800 917 2368 (textphone 0800 121 4042) has been set up which workers and employers can call in confidence for information and advice on employment agencies and other employment matters.

A new poll shows that nearly half of people wrongly think that employment agencies can charge workers a fee for finding them a job.  

Posters and leaflets promoting the campaign are available at www.bis.gov.uk

The Pay and Work Rights helpline 0800 917 2368 (textphone 0800 121 4042) provides practical help and advice for workers and employers, in confidence, on:

· National Minimum Wage

· Agricultural Minimum Wage

· Working Hour Limits

· Working for an agency

· Working for gangmasters

The Helpline is open between 8am and 8pm, Monday to Friday and 9am to 1pm on Saturdays. Further information is also available at www.direct.gov.uk/payandworkrights for workers and at www.businesslink.gov.uk/payandworkrights for employers.

The Government have announced that changes in legislation will not be introduced until October 2011 to “give agencies time to prepare”.

Business Minister Pat McFadden said: “This work is a priority for the Government, and the Prime Minister has said that we will get the implementing legislation on the Statute Book in this Parliament. The regulations will come into force on 1st October 2011 giving the sectors using agency workers time to prepare for this change.”

He added: “We need flexibility, opportunity and fairness. Most people would agree that it is not right that an agency worker can spend months even years on a job while always being paid less than a permanent employee doing the same thing.”

The Department for Business Innovation and Skills have now launched a consultation document on the draft Agency Worker Regulations.

It proposes that agency workers will qualify for equal treatment with permanent staff after 12 weeks. They will also be entitled to holiday pay - but not sick pay, redundancy entitlement, notice pay or membership of a pension scheme.

TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: “The Government is right to introduce new rights for agency workers, but it is extremely disappointing that temps will have to wait so long for these rights to come into effect.

“Agency workers are even more in need of protection during a recession. Vulnerable workers are always the first to suffer when times are hard.

“A recent TUC poll revealed abuse and bad treatment for a significant proportion of agency workers. It showed that many rogue employers are using the lack of employment rights and insecurity of agency workers to treat temps badly - to pay them less, to give them less holiday pay, to get out of paying them redundancy or maternity pay, and to neglect their training and development.

“Agency workers must have the right to genuine equal treatment on pay, including basic pay, bonuses, and redundancy pay, and to equal treatment on holiday pay and the ability to take time off, and working time.

“The Government must treat the introduction of the new regulations as a priority, to ensure that agency workers are protected and that the exploitation of temps by rogue agencies ends as soon as possible.

“The new laws must provide real protection for the UK’s hundreds of thousands of agency workers, and any loopholes which would allow unscrupulous employers to avoid the law and to undercut reputable firms must be closed. This includes measures to prevent the use of bogus self-employment arrangements to avoid new rights for agency workers.”

AGENCY workers will be denied fair treatment by a new Conservative Government.

That was the promise from the party’s business spokesman Jonathan Djanogly (pictured right) during the Conservative Party’s recent Annual Conference in Manchester.

Mr Djanogly, MP for Huntingdon, warned that implementation of the European Union’s Agency Workers’ Directive (AWD) would be delayed at least until December 2011.

But TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber has warned that implementing the Directive is a legal requirement for Britain.

Commentators say the Conservatives are now openly proposing to break the law.

Mr Djanogly, shadow minister for corporate governance and business regulation, told the conference that the Conservatives would delay the implementation of the controversial directive because it would cost British businesses £40 billion over the next 10 years.

But he offered no evidence to support his claims, which are identical to the objections made to the introduction of a National Minimum Wage.

Meanwhile, and to no-one’s great surprise, employers immediately welcomed the Tory announcement.

Kevin Green, (kevin.green@rec.uk.com) chief executive of the employer’s organisation the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), said: “We have been calling on the Government to delay implementing this directive until the last possible moment in 2011. The cost of getting the implementation of this directive wrong could be huge.

“It is vital that the labour market recovers before the regulations are implemented. This is a complex issue and by waiting until December 2011 we can ensure that we minimise the adverse affect this legislation may have on jobs.”

Alan Rommel, managing director of the IT company, Parity Resources, added: ” I think it is great to push the directive back because it could restrict flexibility.

“I support the AWD for the right people but it can be restrictive for some.”

But Brendan Barber hit out at the ‘disappointing’ move.

He said: “At a time of recession vulnerable workers are even more likely to be exploited by unscrupulous employers. Agency workers are particularly prone to abuse as they have so few rights.

‘The EU Directive goes some way to remedying this and is being implemented in the UK on a basis agreed by employers and unions.

‘Implementing the Directive is not optional, but a requirement of EU law. There is a danger that this issue gets caught up in Conservative Party divisions about Europe, and the real abuse suffered by agency workers gets completely forgotten.’

Derek Twigg, MP for Halton

TRADE unions are demanding equal treatment for agency workers when the TUC annual Congress meets in Liverpool later this month.

A resolution from the GMB calls on the Government to give agency workers equal treatment on holidays, hours and pay, including overtime, redundancy, maternity pay, performance-related pay, shift allowances, unsocial hours payments, commission, bonuses, parental and paternity entitlements and paid training.

The resolution says adoption by the British Government of the EU Temporary Agency Workers’ Directive will give “long overdue rights and protections to a growing number of vulnerable workers”.

It also commits the trade union movement to working with the Government to “ensure robust and effective implementation and early enactment of these rights in the UK” to prevent avoidance and abuse.

The resolution, which is due to be discussed by the annual Congress at the Liverpol Convention Centre on Wednesday September 16th, calls on the Government to implement the EU Directive by the Spring.

Read the full resolution and amendments at Temporary Agency Workers