New Regulation of Recruitment Agencies and Overseas Recruitment - Response to Consultation

We previously reported on the government's consultation, which ran from 13 October to 23 November 2015.

The government has considered the responses and intends to proceed with amending the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 (the Conduct Regulations), in line with the majority of the proposals within the consultation.

The most significant proposal is the intention to prohibit employment agencies and employment businesses from recruiting solely from other EEA countries, without advertising in Great Britain and in English. This is already the case for recruitment relating to specific individual vacancies, but the proposed amendment will extend this to generic recruitment campaigns. As a breach will be a criminal offence, it is essential that (if and when implemented) all recruitment businesses ensure that their practices are compliant.

In addition to this headline change, it is also proposed that the following regulations will be removed from the Conduct Regulations:

• Regulation 9, which restricts recruitment businesses from purporting to act on a different basis, (ie. telling work seekers that they are an employment agency, whilst telling the hirer that they are an employment business).
   
• Regulation 11, which prohibits recruitment agencies and employment businesses from entering into a contract on behalf of a client.
   
• Regulation 17, which requires employment businesses to agree with the hirer the terms that will apply between the employment business and the hirer, before providing services.

The following regulation will also be amended:

• Regulation 23 will be amended to remove the requirement for an employment agency or business to check the suitability of any other employment agency, or business they enter into a contract with, and to agree the capacity in which each of them will act.

The government has decided to retain the requirement (under Regulation 27) for advertisements for vacancies to include specific information, including the nature of the work, the location at which the work seeker would be required to work, and the minimum experience, training, or qualifications.

Best Practice

We will continue to keep you updated, including confirming when the proposed changes are due to take effect. In the meantime, it would be advisable to review your terms of business with work seekers and hirers to identify any areas which may require amendment once changes are implemented.