threat by job agency

TrickyDicky101

Whenever I have used agencies to seek employment it has always been very clear that the agency was employed (and paid for) by the employer, not me as a candidate. Agency did not work for me - although our mutual interests were aligned at the time.

OP, had you agreed any payment to the agency for finding you an interview?

Majestic12

TrickyDicky101 wrote: »

Whenever I have used agencies to seek employment it has always been very clear that the agency was employed (and paid for) by the employer, not me as a candidate. Agency did not work for me - although our mutual interests were aligned at the time.

OP, had you agreed any payment to the agency for finding you an interview?

Nope nothing agreed for payment, Nothing signed for and their terms and conditions only refer to business with employer clients. I would never agree to use such agency if they would charge me for looking for work or a missed interview. You a right, I am not their client. A prospective employer would be.

Undervalued

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays wrote: »

What nonsense.

The OP instructed the employment agency to find him work. They did this. He may not have to pay, but we don't know the terms on which he engaged the agency.

A contract needs offer, acceptance and consideration - clearly all 3 were present between the OP and the agency.

Exactly!

A contract does not have to be in writing (with a very few exceptions) to be legally enforceable. By using the agency's services the OP will have agreed to their standard terms and conditions. Unless any happen to be unlawful then they are binding on both parties.

Had the OP gone to the interview and got the job the agency would have got a fee from the employer. They take that chance. However, if the OP doesn't bother to turn up then the agency has no chance of earning any money.

Having said all that, whether they would actually pursue a claim against the OP through the courts is another matter. They may well not but, based on what has been posted here, if they did they are likely to win.

19lottie82

Undervalued wrote: »

Having said all that, whether they would actually pursue a claim against the OP through the courts is another matter. They may well not but, based on what has been posted here, if they did they are likely to win.

I don't agree with this in the slightest.

Yes you're right that a contract doesn't need to be in writing, but that doesn't mean that this covers charges / fees / fines when you don't attend appointments.

For this to be enforceable the OP would have had to agreed to it at some point, and he hasn't. There is no way this would stand up in court.

Marktheshark

A verbal contract is not worth the paper its written on......

Undervalued

19lottie82 wrote: »

I don't agree with this in the slightest.

Yes you're right that a contract doesn't need to be in writing, but that doesn't mean that this covers charges / fees / fines when you don't attend appointments.

For this to be enforceable the OP would have had to agreed to it at some point, and he hasn't. There is no way this would stand up in court.

If it is in their standard terms of business then he has agreed to it by using their services. His action has removed any chance the agency had of earning a fee for their work. If all of their clients did this then they would earn no money at all.

It is a bit like using an estate agent to sell your house. Usually that is on a no sale no fee basis. However if you pull out early or deliberately behave in such a way as to prevent a sale then the agency will have a claim against you for at least part of the fee they had the chance to earn.

19lottie82

Undervalued wrote: »

If it is in their standard terms of business then he has agreed to it by using their services.

But it's not. All the OP has sighted is the general T&C's on the company website which make no mention of this.

stevemLS

The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 would seem to have it covered.

An agency may not charge a work-seeker a fee for the simple finding of work.

They may, however, charge for additional services but may not make the provision of a work finding service conditional on taking additional services. Any charges or the method of their calculation must be agreed in advance and the work-seekers agreement must be obtained and reduced to writing in a single document.

So, unless those latter steps have been carried out, I don't believe you would be liable for these charges.

No doubt they would argue that the Regs do not apply since they provided a work-finding service and you failed to meet your obligation to attend the interview, but my view is that this does not defeat the requirement that your agreement to terms be obtained.

stevemLS

Undervalued wrote: »

If it is in their standard terms of business then he has agreed to it by using their services. His action has removed any chance the agency had of earning a fee for their work. If all of their clients did this then they would earn no money at all.

It is a bit like using an estate agent to sell your house. Usually that is on a no sale no fee basis. However if you pull out early or deliberately behave in such a way as to prevent a sale then the agency will have a claim against you for at least part of the fee they had the chance to earn.

No, the statutory requirements "trump" their terms.

pinpin

They're dreaming! Tell 'em to !!!! off!