Contractors in Northern Ireland do not appear to have suffered since AWR came into force, with businesses continuing to hire temps on a regular basis.
Tom Hadley, the REC’s director of policy and professional services, said that although AWR had an affect on the contractor community, employers had differing ways of approaching the change. They continue to require recruiters to supply them with skilled staff at short notice to meet peaks in demand and unexpected absence. A shift towards more flexible staffing arrangements bodes well for the survival of agencies post AWR, he added.
Contractors in NI had been worried that demand for their skills would drop off once AWR was implemented, but REC chief executive, Kevin Green, pointed out that so far it had had a negligible impact.
Meanwhile, the Cardiff branch of the REC Policy Forum met recently to discuss how AWR had affected the Welsh recruitment industry.
Philippa George, the chair of the Welsh branch, said AWR impact different sectors in differing ways but demand for temps is still strong, even in some public sector roles. Some clients have been working constructively with their recruiter and in fact AWR has led to some agencies forging stronger relationships with their key clients.
She went on to say that recruiters have flagged challenges in the education sector and low margin blue-collar industries. Clients also need to be reminded that they need to provide information to recruiters as soon as it becomes available. Feedback from recruiters suggests that the industry is meeting this latest challenge and although it is still early days, signs indicate that agencies will continue to thrive.
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