60 second guide to engaging employment agencies

The obligations on hirers and agencies under the Agency Workers Regulations 2010 impact on the terms that hirers might like to see included in the commercial agreement between them and the agency. Here are some suggestions of terms that hirers might want to see in agency agreements as a consequence of the Regulations: - A statement setting out the status of the agency workers who will be supplied. Are they employees of the agency, workers or genuinely self-employed? - How are the fees charged by the agency structured? How will an increase in agency worker pay affect overall cost to the hirer? Is the cost of extra payments to the agency worker (for example a bonus) passed back to the hirer whenever it occurs? - Agreement by the agency to invoice the hirer only for holiday that has accrued to date or a rebate provision allowing the hirer to recoup from the agency the costs of any holiday taken in excess of the accrued amount. - A requirement that the agency worker take statutory holiday only and receive an increased hourly rate or one off payment in lieu to deal with any additional contractual entitlement. - Agreement by the agency to request information from the hirer about basic employment conditions a few weeks before an agency worker completes their qualifying period – so this is not forgotten. - Agreement that the agency will remind the hirer to keep it informed about pay rises/bonuses/performance pay at specified times of the year. - Agreement by the agency to pass on to workers any information about accessing facilities and information about vacancies that the hirer provides to the agency. - Data protection and confidentiality provisions to prevent the agency disclosing any information from the hirer about basic employment conditions to third parties and an agreement that the agency will comply with its data protection obligations. - Agreement that the agency will deal promptly with any complaint by an agency worker about their rights under the Regulations and inform the hirer of the complaint immediately. - Hirers might also want to seek warranties from the agency, for example that the agency worker is indeed their employee and that it will comply with the Regulations. The hirer might also want the agency to agree to indemnify it in certain circumstances, for example if the hirer receives any claims from the agency worker that arise because the hirer has breached a term of the agreement with the hirer or the Regulations.