Agency worker regulations

scooby088

I have been with an agency now for around 12/13 weeks and as I understand it the agency worker regulations give agency staff the right to equal pay. As I understand it the employees of the company I am at are on a pound more than me, so my question is do I approach the agency to ask to be paid the same rate. Or do I just keep smiling and hope they amend it themselves.

Looks like I have got it wrong it only says I am entitled to NMW, already paid above that.

anamenottaken

scooby088 wrote: »

I have been with an agency now for around 12/13 weeks and as I understand it the agency worker regulations give agency staff the right to equal pay. As I understand it the employees of the company I am at are on a pound more than me, so my question is do I approach the agency to ask to be paid the same rate. Or do I just keep smiling and hope they amend it themselves.

Looks like I have got it wrong it only says I am entitled to NMW, already paid above that.

It is about working in the same job for 12 weeks for the same client, rather than working for an agency for that period of time which could be with different employers.

You need to be sure that the company using your services would definitely pay a directly employed person the higher rate if they had the same length of service as you do in the same job. If they would and it hasn't been reflected in your pay received for the 13th week, contact the agency.

Remember too that if directly employed staff would have more than the statutory minimum holiday entitlement, you should begin to accrue holiday at the same enhanced rate.

scooby088

I have asked the companies current employees and they are on a pound an hour more and were on that from day 1 when they started, although we have been told that agency staff will be employed direct by the company once they get the go ahead from head office.

McKneff

To be honest, Im not sure that eventually you will shoot yourself in the foot. If the agency get wind of you asking employees what rate of pay they are on and possibly stirring it, they could end up taking you off their books and informing other agencies in the area, so be careful.

And the Employees shouldn't be giving you this information, there could be clauses in their contracts forbidding them to disclose to colleagues, let alone Agency staff. They as employers could just as easily stop using your agency because of this.
So again, be careful.

Caroline_a

You should certainly have the same holiday entitlement as the other staff members, although you will still have to accrue it. So, if you are now entitled to, say, 2.5 days per month, then you will have to work a month until you accrue 2.5 days. As far as pension rights go, that is more complex, and it depends on the size of the agency...

scooby088

At the moment my only goal is to get taken on by the company, so I will keep my head down and stop asking questions.

marybelle01

Agency workers entitlements are NOT automatic. Many agencies are now using the Swedish Deprogation which means they do not have to match directly employed workers terms in pay, holidays etc. So in addition to McNeffs warnings are exercising due care, you might first want to check that you are actually entitled to these "rights". Nothing worse than shotting yourself in the foot only to discover that you weren't entitled to it anyway! You could end up losing your employment as a potential troublemaker when you don't even have a right to equal pay!

anamenottaken

McKneff wrote: »

To be honest, Im not sure that eventually you will shoot yourself in the foot. If the agency get wind of you asking employees what rate of pay they are on and possibly stirring it, they could end up taking you off their books and informing other agencies in the area, so be careful.

And the Employees shouldn't be giving you this information, there could be clauses in their contracts forbidding them to disclose to colleagues, let alone Agency staff. They as employers could just as easily stop using your agency because of this.
So again, be careful.

There is no law of the land which says employees should not discuss their pay with anyone else, fellow employee, contractor, agency worker. As you say, there could be a clause in their contract which says they should not do so but I have never had such a clause in mine, not even a vague feel in the organisation that it is not allowed.

Why would an employer stop using an agency just because their own staff had told an agency worker what their own rate of pay was? It's not upsetting the staff - they can sit back and think of how much more they are earning than someone working alongside them. They could even think how well they are doing and not push their employer for a payrise.

And do agencies really help each other by putting the word out that Candidate N is a problem because they found out they didn't get paid as much as permanent staff when this is such a common situation?

anamenottaken

Caroline_a wrote: »

You should certainly have the same holiday entitlement as the other staff members, although you will still have to accrue it. So, if you are now entitled to, say, 2.5 days per month, then you will have to work a month until you accrue 2.5 days. As far as pension rights go, that is more complex, and it depends on the size of the agency...

In connection with the Agency Workers Regulations, as far as equal treatment with directly employed staff is concerned, pension contributions are not included in pay.

Caveat_Mortgagor

It will depend entirely on your contract.

Some agencies and employers circumvent the provisions of the AWR by using the 'swedish derogation'. This entitles you to pay at the end of an assignment but in return you give up your entitlemt to equal pay.

It would be helpful to know what type of contract you have.

A few years ago the law changed regarding discussing your pay. An employer can no longer insist you do not discuss your pay. So by asking other staff you are doing nothing wrong.

As for being put on some sort of agency blacklist, I nearly split my sides laughing, agencies generally hate each other, they dont usually help each other out.

However, if an agency is underpaying you, it will almost certainly be deliberate rather than an oversight. I would suggest that they would happily move you on if they thought you were causing trouble.

My advice would be to play dumb whilst it suits you. If you get taken on by the employer (or find another job elsewhere) you can ask the agency to backdate the missing pay.

How well do you get on with your immediate supervisors at the company (not the agency) you work for? Would you feel comfortable asking them to represent you with your questions to the agency?