Manufacturing sector employing more temporary workers

Its data shows the number of hours worked by temporary staff has increased year-on-year by 35% in January and year-on-year by 48% in February, as manufacturers increased their labour needs to support higher output.. John Salisbury (pictured), MD at de Poel, commented: "Despite signs that the manufacturing sector is picking up, it is early days and we will have to wait to see if this period of growth is sustainable." He warned, however, that many firms are not keeping a sufficiently close eye on their temporary labour budgets: "Managing temporary agency spend tightly is critical, especially for manufacturers trying to survive in today's uncertain climate, and can be done easily by introducing standard pricing structure and service level agreements. Operating a system of control is essential to ensure companies remain compliant with labour regulations such as the Agency Workers Regulations (AWR)."