Umbrella company contractors may not be aware that the UK now has a new employment relations minister. Norman Lamb has taken over from Edward Davey and part of his remit is to look into ways to reduce the amount of red tape facing recruiters.
The REC has now announced that it is to meet with the new minister to ensure he understands the valuable contribution the recruitment sector makes to the UK economy.
Tom Hadley, the director of policy at the REC, explained that the immediate priority was to highlight the positive role of recruiters and to ensure the right regulatory landscape and compliance framework were in place to help the sector prosper.
He went on to say that the Red Tape Challenge provided an excellent opportunity to express the industry’s views. Furthermore, the REC hopes the Department for Business will continue to fight for the sector on overall employment policy and more specific issues such as pensions’ reform and taxation.
Meanwhile, the latest Report on Jobs from the Confederation showed that permanent placements in six out of the eight sectors surveyed increased last month. Amongst the sectors showing positive growth were IT, engineering and office professionals. Demand for hotel and catering staff declined, but that should not come as any great surprise after the festive season.
Kevin Green, the REC’s chief executive, once again pointed out that there was a mismatch between what jobseekers can offer and what employers actually want. Part of the solution would be to provide candidates with better career guidance, he said, as would more apprenticeships that provide young people with vocational skills.
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Image: Red Tape – 20070606-1 by roland
