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To coincide with the launch of MP Andrew Miller's Private Member's Bill, the TUC has published its top business arguments against giving agency workers equal rights are based on several myths. A review of their 'myths' and 'facts' show that the freelancer business model is not a consideration for the trade unions, but neither is there a commitment that it would be exempt.
The concern among freelancers has been that any such move - whether UK or EU-driven - would be so wide-reaching that they would be 'caught' with rights that they don't want and that would deter end-clients from using their services.
This agency workers move has been on and off the agenda for several years with trade unions campaigning for employment rights for what they consider to be disadvantaged workers; and representatives of big and small businesses battling to keep the proposals dormant.
At the moment, there is stale-mate with the European Directive which has been temporarily shelved. But there is still pressure at home for the Government to legislate
Myths and facts
The TUC cites the following 'myths' and 'facts' to support its case.
- Myth: Agency workers aren't any worse off than permanent staff.
Fact: Part-time and fixed-term contract workers enjoy equal treatment with full-time and permanent staff, but currently employers are free to discriminate against agency workers in terms of pay and basic working conditions. They can hire agency workers on lower hourly rates than they would pay directly employed workers, and on far worse terms and conditions to do the same job as directly employed staff. Agency staff miss out on a whole range of benefits such as overtime, sickness and maternity benefits, and this insecurity has a huge effect on their financial position.
- Myth: Giving agency workers equal rights would cost 250,000 jobs (CBI claim).
Fact: Similar arguments were made with regard to the introduction of the national minimum wage, and now no one - not even the business community - is claiming that the minimum wage has cost jobs. Since the minimum wage was introduced more than 2,250,000 extra jobs have been created. The same false claims were made when part-time workers were given protection; again, these extra rights did not cost jobs in the UK.
- Myth: Small businesses cannot afford to give temps equal rights.
Fact: As before, the introduction of equal treatment for part-time workers and the national minimum wage did not lead to job losses. Given that temps represent between 1-2.6 per cent of the total workforce in the UK, it is hard to see how regulations affecting such a small proportion of workers would have such disastrous economic effects on the labour market. Indeed, other countries that have introduced equal treatment provisions have similar levels of temps to the UK (Belgium, France and the Netherlands all have between 2.2-2.5 per cent) and there has been little or no impact there on the level of growth of temporary agency work.
- Myth: Agency workers are only in temporary jobs for short placements so don't need equal rights.
Fact: Labour Force Survey (LFS) figures show that a quarter of agency staff are in assignments for more than a year (and that they are not just filling a temporary need).
- Myth: Agency workers use temp jobs as a 'stepping stone' to a permanent career.
Fact: Many of the companies that agency workers are placed with do not invest in training, so temps are far less likely to learn new skills than directly employed staff. As a result they become trapped in a career of low paid and insecure work, in a weak position to move on to better paid, more secure work. Thirty five per cent of respondents to a TUC and YouGov survey last year said they felt that temping had played no role in helping them achieve a permanent job.
- Myth: Agency workers want to be temps and don't want equal rights.
Fact: The same TUC/YouGov survey revealed that for many respondents agency work was not delivering choice and control over their working lives and they wanted the same rights as those in permanent employment.
- Myth: Employers have nothing to gain from giving agency workers equal rights.
Fact: Employers would benefit from offering temp workers equal rights, as agency work is not viewed as an attractive line of work. LFS figures show that around half all agency workers say they would prefer the security of a permanent job. Employers would benefit from a wider pool of experienced and skilled labour if agency work became a more attractive option. They would also enjoy the benefits of a more committed and motivated temp workforce in terms of service and product quality.
- Myth: Agency workers should only get equal rights after a qualifying period.
Fact: The TUC is concerned that any qualifying period would result in many agency workers losing out on protection altogether. Recent official figures show that if agency workers were only given equal rights to the same basic working conditions as directly employed staff after 12 months, nearly three quarters (71.6 per cent) of agency workers would miss out. If the qualifying period was set at six months, over half of temporary workers (54 per cent) would still not be eligible for these rights. And a three-month qualifying period would automatically exclude a quarter of all agency workers (25.1 per cent). There is also the possibility that rogue employers might get rid of their agency workers immediately before they qualified for any new rights.
Underclass of workers
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: "There is nothing wrong with legitimate employment agencies providing short-term work for those with short-term availability.
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"In particular too many employers are using agencies to replace secure jobs with reasonable terms and conditions with badly paid, insecure agency staff. Far from providing a bridge to permanent work, this runs the risk of creating an underclass of workers who cannot get permanent work, who have no loyalty to employers, and who have to move from part-time job to part-time job.
"Andrew Miller's Private Member's Bill is an important opportunity to introduce decent minimum standards for all. We ask MPs to be present for the debate on Friday 22 February, and urge the Government to support the Bill's passage through Parliament."
In reality, a Private Members' Bill has little chance of success without Government support, and is often used just as a means of keeping an item on the political agenda.
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Susie Hughes © Shout99 2008
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