EQUAL TREATMENT FOR AGENCY WORKERS
Under the EU Directive on Temporary Agency Work, agency workers have the right to equal treatment in basic working and employment conditions as if they had been directly recruited by the hirer from their first day at work. This has now been included in Irish law by the Protection of Employees (Temporary Agency Work) Act 2012.
This Act applies to agency workers employed by an employment agency who are then temporarily assigned to work for another company for a period of time.
Under the Act, basic working and employment conditions include: pay, duration of working time, rest periods, breaks, night work, annual leave and public holidays.
Pay is defined as: basic pay, shift premium, piece work, overtime, unsocial hours worked and Sunday work. It does not include occupational pension schemes, sick pay, bonuses, benefit in kind or maternity pay.The right to equal pay is backdated to 5th December 2011.
The agency workers must also have equal access to facilities such as childcare, canteens and car parking. They must also have equal access to information about permanent employment opportunities.
Bright Contracts - Employment Contracts and Handbooks
