The Agency Workers Regulations will come into force on 1 October 2011. The Regulations will give agency workers the right to the same basic working and employment conditions they would receive if they were engaged directly by an end user to do the same job. These basic working conditions are essentially limited to pay and working time.
After twelve weeks in the same job with the same end user, agency workers will be entitled to equal treatment with the end user's own staff. There are some exceptions to the equal treatment, but in effect, agency workers will be entitled to the same pay, holiday entitlement, rest breaks and working hours as the end user's own staff.
The twelve weeks qualifying period does not necessarily have to be consecutive, the Regulations allow for breaks of up to six weeks. There are a number of anti-avoidance measures and Employers who are worried about the impact of this legislation are advised to seek legal advice.
