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View All NewsEurope – Impact of recent legislation on temporary recruitment
As part of Staffing Industry Analysts’ annual survey of buyers of contingent labour, we asked temporary staffing procurement professionals about the impact of European legislation on their use of temporary workers.
Respondents were generally positive about the ‘Pacte de Responsabilité’ in France. The Pact of Responsibility, according to President Hollande is: “Based on the simple principles of lower labour costs, fewer constraints on businesses, more hiring, and greater social dialogue.”
A third (32%) of respondents said that it would modestly increase their use of contingent labour, compared with only 15% who indicated that the pact would reduce their use.
Buyers were neutral about the potential effects of a German minimum wage. As part of the coalition agreement between Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats Union (CDU) and the Social Democrat Party (SPD), Germany will introduce its first ever national minimum wage of €8.50 per hour in 2015.
Regarding the UK’s Pensions Act 2014, buyers were again relatively neutral, with only a slightly higher percentage of buyers indicating that they would reduce their use of temporary workers compared with those indicating that they would increase their use as a result of the law.
Starting in October 2012, millions of UK workers have been enrolled into a workplace pension by their employer. As part of a phased introduction, more than 1,000 recruitment employers reached their implementation staging date between April and July this year. The Pensions Regulator had announced last year that it would focus its attentions on the recruitment industry, due to the additional challenges faced by the sector.
Overall, buyers suggested that the Dutch Work & Security Act would cause them to modestly reduce their use of temporary workers. Over a third (35%) of respondents suggested that they would reduce their use of temporary workers, compared to only 15% who planned to increase use as a result of the law.
The Dutch Work & Security Act was adopted on June 10th. This legislation introduces a number of regulations that affect temporary work in the Netherlands, including limitations on successive fixed-term contracts, and (with exceptions) a prohibition on non-compete clauses in fixed-term contracts.
Results are based on the findings of our 2014 Contingent Buyers Survey, conducted in April 2014, and reflect the opinions of buyer respondents from 239 large (1,000+ employee) companies. We have produced a number of reports based on this survey including information about buyers’ international presence, recruiting difficulties and best advice for recruiting and retaining former employees.
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