Welcome to issue 230 of the ukrecruiter newsletter.
back to top
Advertisement
Empower your business in 2005 with Talisman
* Fully integrated web enabled solution for Recruitment
* Front & Back Office, Timesheet Management, Payroll
* Remote Timesheet Entry module, Document Management
* Integrated Candidate & Client Extranets
The system that grows with your business
For more information, or to book a demo Contact
Nik at Beacon Tel: 01582 478 888, Mobile: 07940 169 779 or email nikg@beacon.co.uk
|
Article
One: Legal Question - Permanent Candidate Contracts by Penn
Legal
Question
I have recently heard that some agencies, on advice from their lawyers, have started to agree contractual terms with their permanent candidates. While I know that contractual terms are needed with my temporary candidates I cannot understand why contracts are needed for permanent candidates. After all no money changes hands between the candidate and the agency and their eventual contractual relationship will be with the new employer. Do I really need to use these contracts, and what are the consequences of not doing so? What provisions should be included in the contracts and where can I get such a contract cheaply?
Answer
The failure to agree contractual terms with candidates who are only seeking permanent work is one of the most common breaches of the law committed by agencies. Since the 6 April 2004 it has been an offence to start to look for work for a candidate unless you have agreed contractual terms with them, this includes your permanent candidates, even though, as you correctly state your relationship with them is not financial (i.e. you don’t pay or give them money).
The matters that need to be included in the contract with a permanent candidate are not extensive and you can comply with the basic requirements quite easily.
Essentially if you just want to comply with the law then your contractual terms can be very basic, and only need to establish whether:
- you are an employment agency or an employment business (you will be an ‘employment agency’ when the candidate is only seeking permanent work), and
- the type of work that you are going to seek to find for the candidate.
The consequences not having contracts in place can, theoretically, be severe (e.g. a maximum fine of up to £5,000, closure of your business, and a ban from opening another recruitment business for 10 years), although in practice you are likely to be given a warning by the DTI before any such action is taken. You could also be sued by the Candidate or indeed the Client if they have suffered a loss arising from your breach of the law.
Technically these terms can be agreed verbally, although you are legally obliged to keep a record of the agreement in a retrievable format (e.g. on paper or software file etc).
However whilst you are agreeing contractual terms with the candidate it makes sense to take the opportunity to include a number of additional provisions that offset the various risks that you face. For example you may wish to include provisions that do the following:
1. Liability Limitation - if such clauses are to be valid they need to be drafted in line with statute and case law. It is always best to have multiple and overlapping provisions which assist in the event that the court deems one or more of the clauses to be unreasonable.
2. Offset Obligations – a number of agencies use template contracts that repeat their statutory obligations, this is dangerous as it reminds the candidate and their lawyers of your obligations and it puts your under a contractual obligation that is additional to your statutory obligation to perform these tasks.
It is better to include provisions that require the candidate to discharge these a number of obligations that overlap with your statutory duties (e.g. information gathering). This means that if the candidate sues the agency for breach of it’s statutory obligation then the agency may be able to ‘counterclaim’ against the candidate for breaching it’s contractual obligations. In practice this may deter a candidate from bringing a claim.
In summary you need to agree contractual terms with all your candidates before looking for work for them. Although the legal content of the contract can be minimal it is better to take the opportunity to include additional provisions that protect your interests. Agencies with well drafted contracts and considered procedures will have reduced legal costs and avoid the hidden costs of DTI investigations defending civil claims from candidates and clients.
Gareth Williams specialises in Recruitment Agency Law at Penn
Legal. Telephone 0870 043 4361 or email agency@pennlegal.co.uk
Penn Legal specialise in servicing the recruitment industry and provide a range of products and services including template contracts.
|
back to top
Advertisement
No time wasters – only sales professionals!
Salestarget.co.uk is a specialist sales
recruitment website from Totaljobs Group. Launched in June
2005, the site is already established as the UK’s leading source
of quality sales jobs from hundreds of well known employers. The
site covers all sales sectors including FMCG, construction financial
services, pharmaceutical, recruitment and IT sales.
For more information visit us today at http://www.salestarget.co.uk/
or email sales@salestarget.co.uk
quoting reference UKREC.
|
Article
Two: Top tips on Employer Branding by Inspira uk
Employer branding focuses on more than the product or service a company is providing. It is based on the theme of human capital and how a positive relationship with your staff can better align brand positioning and prompt long-term customer loyalty. Simple idealism or sound business sense? And what do we mean when we refer to employer branding in the day-to-day sense?
Brands today decide the value of an organisation and the position of a company within a specific market. Consumers tend to buy attitudes, based on belief and instinct, and are increasingly discerning in their choices. Ultimately, employer branding is designed to generate long term customer loyalty, attract new users and significantly increase profitability.
‘How to live the Brand’:
-
Communicate the organisation’s attitudes clearly, thus increasing the strength of the brand position
-
Ensure that employees have the right attitude and values This is as important as their skill base when considering employer/employee compatability
-
Evaluate a customer’s brand expectations and consistently seek to exceed expectations
-
Adopt an overall holistic approach to people and brands in order to enhance the working lives of employees and maximise the company’s ability to consistently deliver
-
Aim to create a competent HR function; this will enhance the organisation’s internal and external interface. In other words promote positive employer branding
-
Above all, live the brand! Conveying the very essense of the brand is the key challenge for modern businesses, and particularly applies to those involved with direct customer interface
Inspira UK provides intelligent HR solutions to a cross-section of human capital and brand related issues. For more information please visit
www.inspira-uk.com.
For media information please contact Jacinta Francis at Miranda Leslau public relations & consultancy on 020 7263 5618/0797 793 9116 or via email at
prconsultancy@mirandaleslau.com
|
back to top
Advertisement
Need Inspirational Leadership?
Lander Associates presents a 2 day leadership programme full of invaluable tips and techniques to help build and retain successful
teams. Give people the skills and confidence they need to become an
effective leader
"The course content and delivery was just excellent! I came away with
great tools under my belt and have put these into practice already" David
Priestley, Source People
13th - 14th September 2005, Strand London, 1st - 2nd November 2005,
Edinburgh
Exclusive UK Recruiter rate - For more information or to reserve a
place. CALL NOW 01582 791838 or e-mail lisa@landerassociates.co.uk
www.landerassociates.co.uk
|
Don't
Miss This
2005 Leadership Course Special Offer
Lander Associates are offering ukrecruiter subscribers an exclusive rate for their 2 Day Leadership programme. Normally costing £625 London/ £575 Edinburgh per person, ukrecruiter subscribers can book for just £575/ £525 per person. Call now as places are limited on 01582 791838 or email
lisa@landerassociates.co.uk
quoting reference: ukrec.
Discounted Seminar, Employing Non-UK Nationals - Overseas Recruitment Strategies,
1st December 2005, Thistle Lancaster Gate, London
Eight in 10 UK employers recruit overseas and recently 42% of employers have increased their overseas recruitment. Workplace discrimination legislation and a proposed new immigration system are likely to have a huge impact.
This seminar helps organisations ensure they are prepared for the practical and legal challenges of recruiting overseas nationals, as well as being prepared to tackle the more delicate issues of discrimination and
integration. For more information visit www.symposium-events.co.uk
Alternatively email Sarah Walker swalker@symposium-events.co.uk
or contact her on 020 7403 3990. Book by 16th September 2005 and receive a 20% Early Bird
discount if you quote ukrec.
Free Breakfast Seminar, Developments in Recruitment Law: challenges and
opportunities, 5th October 2005, London
Taking place at 1 Quality Court, Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1HR
from 8am till 10:30am. Free to attend. For more information,
including an agenda, email agency@pennlegal.co.uk
or call 0870 043 4361
UK Recruiter Discussion Forum
- Are you using it?
Don't forget to visit http://www.ukrecruiter.co.uk/forum. Current topics on the site
include "Recruitment
exams???", "Preferred
Supplier Lists - Where do I start!?!" and "The
future of 3rd party recruitment".
It is free to use the discussion board and you don't have to
register to view messages. Visit the site; ask questions and
share your knowledge
|
back to top
Statistics
Hitwise top 10 Recruitment
Sites, August 2005
The most visited UK recruitment sites last week, starting with the
most popular, were www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk,
www.jobsite.co.uk, www.totaljobs.com,
www.reed.co.uk, www.jobs.nhs.uk,
www.monster.co.uk, jobs.guardian.co.uk,
www.jobserve.co.uk, www.s1jobs.com
and www.jobs.ac.uk. For more information about Hitwise, visit http://www.hitwise.co.uk
|
back to top
Please forward this newsletter on to any colleagues or recruitment friends who you think might like to receive the newsletter. It's free for them to sign up - all they need do is
complete the form below.
Regards
Louise Triance
UK Recruiter http://www.ukrecruiter.co.uk
Subscribe
Don't forget to let your colleagues know about this newsletter. Anyone can subscribe - it's completely free of charge - all they need to do to receive their own copy of the ukrecruiter newsletter is complete
our simple form
Unsubscribe
Go to http://ukrecruiter.willco.com/ and log on using
your email address. Click on the link to "member details", and then "delete my account". You can also use this area of the site to change the email address the newsletter is sent to. |
Feedback
Please feel free to email
me your comments on the newsletter: the sort of articles you like,
the sort you don't read, new features you'd like to see, etc.
Feedback from everyone is always welcome!
|
Advertising
If you are interested in advertising a product, service or internet site in the newsletter please contact me by email
|
|
If you want see back issues of
the newsletter visit http://www.ukrecruiter.co.uk/recnet
NOTE: This newsletter may be copied and distributed free of charge in its entirety. Individual sections may
NOT be copied or distributed without the prior written agreement of louise@ukrecruiter.co.uk.
Copyright (c)
2005, UK Recruiter Ltd |
|