Legislation

In general, legislative changes have an impact on the HR services market. Continuously evolving legal environments and the influence of collective labor agreements are often regarded as risks, however, historically most changes in legislation or regulations have led to increased opportunites. A clear example is Germany.

As from January 1, 2004, German staffing companies had to grant their employees the same material conditions of employment, including remuneration, as those applicable to a comparable employee in the service of the client company. This solved the problem of staffing companies competing purely on price and offering employees extremely low wages. Since Germany still had to deal with a double digit unemployment figure, the need for flexibility remained. The solution was found in a Collective Labor Agreement for the staffing market. This secured wages and working conditions but still offered flexibility versus the cost of hiring direct employees. Being the first mover in this consolidating market, deregulation in Germany produced significant benefits for us.

The fact that two of the countries with the best EU record on employment in the 1990s, the UK and the Netherlands, also have the most developed and deregulated staffing industry has not gone unnoticed. The two countries which most recently reviewed their national employment legislation with a view to increasing employment (Italy and Germany) both saw an increased role for staffing companies as essential component of their new approach. This is becoming even more apparent since EU governments have been required to report annually on the national measures they are employing to increase employment in their own countries (as agreed at the November 1997 Luxembourg Jobs Summit).

Legislation introduced in 2008 in China to regulate the labor market will define the playing field for a new and promising flexible staffing market. By the end of 2008 the European Working Directive has been approved which led to equal pay in all countries, which is very beneficial to staffing employees and workers unions. In favour the same unions promised to help lift the sector bans. Within the next 3 years all bans must be lifted in all countries in the European union.

Please also visit the topic "deregulation"

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