Agency workers

The government is consulting on plans to bar agencies from demanding a fee from employers when they want to take agency staff on as permanent employees. The proposals would give the agency the right to an extension of the hiring period but at the end of this the worker would be free to accept work from the employer without the need to pay a fee. The government believes that the current situation, where employers have to pay large fees, deters them from offering permanent work to suitably qualified workers.