Manufacturing Sector AWR Impact

Impact of the Agency Workers Regulations on the Manufacturing sector 

In terms of the temporary labour usage in 2011, this is similar to 2010. This has peaked in May, which again may be due to seasonal fluctuations. The CBI trends survey in June confirmed that 27% of manufacturers describe total orders as above normal, while 26% said they were below normal. The resulting balance of +1% is far above the long-term average (-18%).

The UK manufacturing industry is struggling due to the ability to reduce operating costs by moving abroad. Subsequently, many manufacturing companies have relocated to places such as Asia.

From our Agency Workers Regulations survey, the Manufacturing sector conveys a problem area for the AWR. Agency staff have at times worked at 10 different locations with up to 7 agencies, which creates problems in visibility. Manufacturing managers must keep a close watch on their temps to ensure there are no legal implications from the legislation, as the risk is very high.