UK legislation has until now prohibited employers from turning to agency workers to fill gaps during industrial action. However, as the UK grapples with a historic rail strike that risks bringing the country to a halt, the government announced on 23 June an amendment to Section 7 of the 2003 Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations, which will allow them to do so. This change, which will take effect in the coming weeks, has outraged not only the unions but also temporary employment agencies.
The change to legislation, which is awaiting the formality of being approved by parliament, will enable employers to hire skilled agency workers – at the last minute and for short periods – in the event of strike action, the government says. “Repealing these 1970s-era restrictions will give businesses freedom to access fully skilled staff at speed, all while allowing people to get on with their lives uninterrupted to help keep the economy ticking,” says the UK business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.
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