No change to agency rights is 'grave disappointment'

Government claims that it cannot change the terms of the Agency Workers Regulations is a grave disappointment to employers who rely on agency staff, according to the Association of Recruitment Consultancies (ARC).

The EU-inspired directive will come into force in the UK in October 2011 giving similar rights to temporary workers as employees have - after they pass a 12-week qualifying period.

There had been hopes that the present administration would be sympathetic to the call of some agency groups who were looking for amendments in the proposals. However, the Government has since announced that it would go ahead with the proposals as they stand for fear of sparking a legal challenge if they made changes to an agreement made by the Labour Government with unions and big business.

Adrian Marlowe, Chair of ARC said: "The CBI, ARC and others want a change in the proposed regulation governing the Directive. The Coalition has apparently backed our calls for change in principle, but it claims to have its hands tied because of fears of a legal battle with the TUC under which the 12 week derogation may be lost. It is difficult to understand their concerns and how the TUC can challenge an apparently binding agreement.

"We are thus left in the crazy position where the government cannot safely change any element of this law because of the agreement reached by the appointed social partners, the TUC and CBI, one Sunday afternoon in 2008.

"We cannot allow this to happen again. A clearly defined framework must be established for all to see, so that social partners can never again make an apparently binding decision of this kind, without the Government having the final say over the detail. Any new agreement should follow a proper democratic process and include prior consultation."