Agency Worker Regulations
The Agency Worker Regulations 2010 (AWR) came into effect in England, Scotland and Wales on 1st October 2011 and in Northern Ireland on 1st December 2011.
These regulations give temporary agency workers equal rights to the same pay and working conditions received by their comparable permanent workers. These regulations cover workers and contractors working on a PAYE basis or those working through an Umbrella company.
The regulations give Day One rights which mean that temporary workers should have the same access to facilities as their permanent counterparts. These include things such as toilet and canteen facilities, access to parking and the entitlement to be kept informed of any internal vacancies in the workplace.
After 12 weeks, temporary workers are also entitled to equal pay which includes basic pay, holiday pay, performance related bonuses or incentives. Offering equivalent holiday or holiday pay tends to be one of the most common uplifts that we see at the 12 week point.
The 12 weeks applies from the start of the temporary agency worker’s assignment and may pause for various reasons, but critically the AWR clock resets to zero if the agency worker starts a substantially different role with the hirer or a new organisation.
LAW Absolute Recruitment closely monitors temporary workers around AWR. This means requesting details from the hirer about collective facilities that are available on Day One and then we contact the hirer prior to the 12 week period to establish if there are any amendments to be made to the rates or holiday on our payroll system. We ask for written or email confirmation from the hirer.
