Today has seen yet another attempt by the Trade Unions to back Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, into a corner over the rights of agency workers, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) has claimed.
Earlier today, Tony Woodley, General Secretary of the TandG union has called on Mr Brown to back their campaign on agency workersí rights.
Commenting on the development Tom Hadley, the RECís Director of External Relations said: ìThe trade unions keep pushing on the agency worker issue. This comes as no surprise as the Union bosses are circling the Chancellor hoping to influence his platform to become PM.î
The Unions are pushing for temps to receive the same employment terms and conditions as permanent workers from the moment they start an assignment. Tom Hadley continued: ìThe REC backs good working conditions for the UKís temp workforce and is working with the DTI to improve the lot of vulnerable agency workers. UK plc would be much poorer without the vital work that these temps do.
ìBut it would be a mistake to introduce legislation - and more red tape for the recruitment industry - for the sake of it, ì Tom Hadley continued. ìThe RECís newly-published 360 Tracking Survey has found that 77 per cent of temps were satisfied with their assignments in 2006 while only 11 per cent of temps said they were dissatisfied to any degree. The Unions continue to push the perception that temps are vulnerable and exploited in the workplace ñ the evidence suggests quite the contrary.
ìThe REC calls on Gordon Brown and the Labour Party to listen to the evidence - not the rhetoric on this issue,î Tom Hadley urged.
ìTemps are a vital part of our successful and flexible labour market. The viability of temporary agency work must be preserved if the recruitment industry is going to continue to place 1.2 million temps into work every week.î
REC hits back as unions ramp up campaign against agency workers
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