Agency Workers - Recruiter

The following article comes from the Recruiter: -

Agency workers endure much lower levels of job quality and are paid less than permanent staff, according to a new report.
Conducted by academics at universities in Bradford, Leeds and Kent, the ‘Agency Working in the UK: What do we Know?’ study found that, on average, agency workers are paid £7.80 per hour contrasting with an average £11.47 for permanent workers.
Two out of three agency workers are employed in clerical, semi-skilled and unskilled occupations, while only one fifth are to be found in managerial and professional occupations.
Dr Gary Slater, senior lecturer in economics at the University of Bradford and co-author of the report, said: “The CBI has called for equal rights to be limited to agency workers with tenure of one year or more. Our study shows that almost three-quarters of agency workers would be excluded from coverage if such a restriction were to be put in place, which surely runs counter to the aims of the Bill [Andrew Miller’s Private Member’s Bill] to provide equal treatment.” Dr Chris Forde of Leeds University Business School and the report’s other co-author, added: “Agency working has grown in importance over recent years. Our figures, drawn from nationally representative data, provide a reliable basis for comparing the experience of agency workers with other groups in the labour market.”

G & G Recruitment acknowledges that in the clerical, semi-skilled and unskilled areas this report and the Agency Worker Directive may have a point. However, within professional and niche sectors, like IT and Information Management, the candidates often earn more and any move to give them equal rights with permanent employees would severely hamper the market and effectively ruin the job variety and experiences that temporary work gives these candidates. It would also hinder the economy as a whole as outside skills would not be sourced as often to come in and aid projects or departments. Temporary workers within these professional and niche markets are not only essential to their markets, the economy and the clients but, offer a great experience for candidates and a great earning potential.