Recruiter investigated over 'bogus' advice

Recruitment agency Computer People is being investigated by the Association of Technology Staffing Companies (Atsco) over the advice it is giving to employers who use contractors.

Atsco said that the agency had contacted client organisations by letter, alerting them to the likelihood of unfair dismissal and compensation claims from contractors employed directly rather than through an agency.

The Association fears that if this advice is wrong, it might lead organisations into using agencies when they don't need to.

The investigation was prompted by a complaint from a contractor, who said that Computer People's advice is mistaken. "We're taking legal advice to check whether the information is correct," Atsco chief executive Ann Swain told </>Computing.

Andy White, a director of contractors' information service Shout99, and founder of the Professional Contractors Group, said: "There's no evidence to suggest that clients working through an agency are protected from risk. You can only avoid this if there's no employment contract. This is a direct move to hoover up contractors and boost revenues."

Computer People's managing director Peter Searle described the situation as "a storm in a teacup" and stood by the letter, saying it was "morally and factually correct".

First published in Computing