DEL launch consultation on conduct of employment agencies

The Department for Employment and Learning has announced a public consultation on the introduction of new regulations governing the conduct of employment agencies and businesses.

The proposed Regulations aim to establish a framework of minimum standards that clients, both work-seekers and hirers, of the industry are entitled to expect.

The Regulations will increase levels of protection for work-seekers and hirers, and provide greater clarity to the industry itself.

In recognising the industry’s importance to the Northern Ireland economy, the Minister for Employment and Learning, Barry Gardiner, has called for all interested parties to consider the proposals and respond to the consultation at the earliest opportunity.

“The current regulations are now up to twenty years old," the Minister said. "They need updating to make them relevant and supportive of today’s recruitment industry. We have sought to ensure that the regulations achieve the correct balance between the interests of all those affected.”

The regulations will benefit the industry, work-seekers and hirers alike by seeking to: simplify existing legislative requirements; increase clarity of contractual relationships between workers and hirers; promote labour market flexibility; provide additional protection for clients; reduce the possibility of payment abuses; and safeguard clients’ money.

Copies of the Consultation Document can be obtained from the Department’s website at www.delni.gov.uk.

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