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While agency workers (often called 'temps') benefit from many employment rights, they will have different working rights from employees. As an agency worker, it's important to know your rights and the rules about the way employment agencies and employment businesses should treat you.
Employment businesses and employment agencies are different things:
In reality many businesses deal with both finding temporary work and permanent employment and the term ‘agency’ is used for employment agencies and employment businesses.
Your agency should confirm with you if it is acting to find you a job with an employer or temporary work. If you are unsure if you are an agency worker you should check who pays you, if you are paid by the agency then this makes you an agency worker.
There are important differences between temporary agency workers, and people who have found a fixed-term or permanent job through an employment agency.
Companies often use an employment agency to find them suitable candidates for a job opening, and then hire someone based on the candidates put forward by the agency. In this situation, your employment contract would be with the company that hires you, rather than the employment agency.
If you use employment agencies to find permanent or fixed-term work you are still protected under the rules that govern employment agencies, although not all of the rules will apply to your situation, for example, the employment agency will not pay your salary.
When you are employed directly by a company you will have different employment rights as a permanent or fixed-term member of staff, than you would as an agency worker.
As an agency worker you will either have a contract for service or a contract of employment with the agency who finds you work. This work is often called ‘temporary work’, 'temping' or ‘agency work’. The firm who hires you pays a fee to the agency, and the agency pays your wages. The agency has to pay you even if the hiring company has not paid the agency. Agencies cannot charge you for finding work (although there are some exceptions if you are looking for work in the entertainment or modelling industries).
There are several advantages to being an agency worker, you can:
Flexibility for both worker and employer is one of the features of agency work. As an agency worker you have the flexibility to take up and leave jobs at short notice, but the hiring company also has the flexibility to finish temporary work without being liable for unfair dismissal or redundancy pay. You should check your contract with your agency as it may include a notice period you may be obliged to give.
If you have your own company or work through a limited company and use an agency then you are still protected as an agency worker but you can choose to opt-out of this protection. You must do this before you are introduced to a hiring company by your agency. The opt-out has to be given by both the limited company contractor and the person actually doing the work (eg, if the limited company contractor engages its own workers).
An agency cannot make their work-finding services or an offer of work conditional on you opting out of your rights.
Pay and Work Rights helpline
Help and advice on your employment rights
0800 917 2368
The Pay and Work Rights helpline can give you support or advice on your rights as an agency worker. If you have a general enquiry about your employment rights as an agency worker you can call the helpline or use their online form.
If you would like to make a complaint about an employment agency, you should complete the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS) online complaint form.
Do you know what you are entitled to? Does your agency follow the rules?
