"A growing law firm with a glowing reputation"
Main sponsors of the 2008 Recruitment Awards
Brought to you by
Main
sponsor: Birketts
"A growing law firm with a glowing reputation"
Despite talk of a wider economic slowdown, recruitment activity remains buoyant in the region. While analysts and forward looking surveys do suggest lower job creation in the coming year, employers are still proceeding with caution, anticipating a slower, but still steady hiring environment.
On a general level, there are still other drivers for the demand for staff. Factors such as the imminent change in workforce demographics and the need to replace retiring employees will mean that employers will still need to rely on temporary and permanent staff to meet resourcing challenges, keeping the labour market afloat. As always, skills shortages are affecting virtually every industry.
Whatever the future holds, effective recruitment policies and procedures will remain an essential component of any organisational strategy, whether it be growth or survival. For this reason Birketts LLP is once again delighted to sponsor Archant Norfolk's Recruitment Awards to recognise those outstanding individuals and organisations working in the recruitment arena and contributing towards business success.
Our talented and energetic employment team currently comprises eight lawyers, a consultant, two trainee solicitors and a number of support staff serving some of the region's most important businesses. It assists the recruitment process by guiding clients through the challenges of recent employment legislation including discrimination and equal opportunity issues.
As well as the technical and professional knowledge and expertise it has built up across a wide range of industry sectors, it also offers a number of additional resources and services including regular bespoke in-house training sessions, public seminars and masterclasses and free legal updates through its monthly e-briefings and HR Matters! magazine.
Birketts – Agency Workers’ Survey
Our main sponsor, Birketts solicitors want to give employers and recruitment agencies the chance to have their say on the Government’s proposed new legislation on agency workers. They want you to help by participating in their survey.
Jeanette Wheeler of Birketts explains more:
“In the last decade there have been reviews of the use of agency workers both at EU and national level. The British Government resisted draft EU legislative proposals on this subject in 2002. However the arrival of significant numbers of foreign national workers to the UK, publicity over the abuse by gang-masters of vulnerable workers and the taking over of the EU Presidency by the French in July 2008 has firmly forced this issue back on the agenda. There is already legislation which gives direct temporary hires the same pay and benefits as direct permanent hires but temps hired via an agency are not covered. In addition, agency temps are rarely able to qualify for unfair dismissal protection.
Until 21 May 2008 there was a Private Members’ Bill sponsored by Labour MP Andrew Miller making its way through the House of Commons aimed at creating parity of pay and benefits for agency workers as compared to their counterparts who are hired directly. However as a Private Members’ Bill it was always unlikely ever to become law particularly as it was opposed by the present Government but it did push the issue forward and led earlier this year to Gordon Brown setting up a commission to look into agency worker rights and equality of treatment for the UK’s 1.4 million agency workers.
Then in the past week it was announced that Mr Brown has in fact done a deal with the Unions to give agency workers parity of pay and benefits after only 12 weeks in the job.
In addition, it has also been reported that Gordon Brown has held secret talks with EU officials to strike a “behind the scenes” deal which would provide temporary workers (including agency workers) with full pay and conditions after only six weeks in the job.
What is clear is that the current Government is now fully committed to doing something to incorporate the principle of equal treatment and this principle is enshrined in its recent Draft Legislative Programme. For some employers this will be viewed as the last bastion of employer flexibility (and cost savings) coming under severe if not terminal threat. The Norfolk Chamber of Commerce with the British Chambers of Commerce and other interested bodies have consistently argued that any national or EU legislation of this kind could backfire on those it is intended to help and will reduce flexibility in the job market.
David Frost, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, has commented:
“A flexible UK labour market is clearly of national importance as the economy faces difficult times ahead. This country has benefited from the flexibility provided by temporary workers in the past and it has been one of the main reasons the economy has created so many jobs. This flexibility must be maintained."
So what do you think? We want employers, agency workers and employment agencies to help us assess what the impact of new legislation in this area might have in the region and to pass your views to Government via the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce. Please take ten minutes to complete this survey on-line and help us make your views known.
The survey will close on 30 June 2008 and we will make sure you get to hear the results shortly afterwards.
Survey for Employment Agencies |
Click Here to take survey |
Survey for Employers |
Click Here to take survey |
Survey for Agency Workers |
Click Here to take survey |