News

From: http://www.gmb.org.uk



One of GMB’s (Britain's General Union) two motions to the 2009 TUC Congress in Liverpool next month calls on the Government to bring forward regulations to implement the EU Temporary Agency Workers’ Directive by Spring of 2010 (see text of motion below).

EU Temporary Agency Workers’ Directive has already been adopted by the EU. The UK Government is currently considering comments submitted during a consultation on the drafting of the regulations to implement it in Great Britain. These new regulations are expected to be brought forward during the next parliamentary session. Separate arrangements are needed to implement it in Northern Ireland.

This is the text of the motion “Congress welcomes adoption of the EU Temporary Agency Workers’ Directive giving long overdue rights and protections to a growing number of vulnerable workers, and will work with Government to ensure robust and effective implementation and early enactment of these rights in the UK.

Congress expects the Government to guarantee full equal treatment rights, benefits and protections afforded by this legislation, and to introduce effective and strongly dissuasive measures to prevent avoidance and abuse of the Regulations. The rights and protection of Agency Workers must take priority over the claimed costs and burdens to business.

Congress calls on the Government to:

- Emphasise in the Regulations, as in the Directive, that employment contracts of an indefinite duration are the general form of employment relationship.

- Ensure wide and inclusive definitions of agency and agency worker to prevent bogus self-employment

- Guarantee, in line with all other equal treatment legislation, a broad definition of equal treatment on holidays, hours and pay to include all forms of financial remuneration including basic pay, holiday, overtime, redundancy, maternity pay, performance related pay, shift allowances, unsocial hours payments, commission, bonuses, parental and paternity entitlements, paid training.

- Extend the full protections of the pregnant workers Directive to agency workers in the Regulations

- Ensure agency workers the right to actually take leave as well as holiday pay

- Ensure speedy and effective enforcement through employment tribunal with hirers and agencies joined in the proceedings

- Implement and enforce the rights by Spring 2010”

Paul Kenny GMB General Secretary said “It is time for justice for temporary and agency workers who have been used and abused and disposed of at 5 minutes notice- often after years of working in the same place in the same job. This motion to TUC Congress sets out how GMB want the regulations drafted to eliminate further exploitation”