The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003

Circumstances in which fees may be charged to work-seekers E+W+S

26.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (3) and (4), the restriction on charging fees to work-seekers contained in section 6(1)(a) of the Act M1 shall not apply in respect of a fee charged by an agency for the service provided by it of finding or seeking to find a work-seeker employment in any of the occupations listed in Schedule 3.

(2) Where paragraph (1) applies, subject to paragraph (5), any fee charged by the agency may consist only of a charge or commission payable out of the work-seeker’s earnings in any such employment which the agency has found for him.

(3) Paragraphs (1) and (7) shall not apply where the agency, or any person connected with it, charges a fee to the hirer in respect of the service of supplying or introducing that work-seeker to him.

(4) In any case in which the agency is connected with the hirer, paragraphs (1) and (7) only apply if, prior to the provision of the service in respect of which the fee is to be charged, the agency informs the work-seeker of the fact that it is connected with the hirer.

(5) Paragraph (2) shall not apply to any fee charged to a work-seeker[F1 , who is not a work-seeker seeking employment as a photographic or fashion model,] by an agency in respect of the inclusion of information about the work-seeker in a publication provided that—

(a) the publication is wholly for one or both of the following purposes, namely the purpose of finding work-seekers employment in, or providing hirers with information about work-seekers in relation to, any of the occupations listed in Schedule 3[F2 , other than photographic or fashion model]; and

(b) either—

(i) the only work-finding service provided by the agency or any person connected with it to the work-seeker is the service described in this paragraph; or

(ii) the fee charged to the work-seeker amounts to no more than a reasonable estimate of the cost of production and circulation of the publication attributable to the inclusion of information about that work-seeker in the publication; and

(c) in addition to the requirements in regulations 13F3 ...and 16, in so far as they are applicable, the agency has, before it entered into the contract with the work-seeker by reference to which the fee is to be charged, made available to him a copy of a current edition of the publication (or, where the publication exists only in electronic form, given him access to a current edition of the publication) in which it is offering to include information about him[F4 ; and]

[F5 (d) in relation to a work-seeker who is not seeking employment as an actor, background artist, dancer, extra, musician, singer or other performer, where an agency proposes to include information about the work-seeker in a publication, for 7 days from the date of the agency and the work-seeker entering into a contract for such a service, whether written or oral and whether or not expressly mentioning fees permitted under this paragraph—

(i) the agency shall not charge a fee permitted by this paragraph to a work-seeker;

(ii) the work-seeker shall be entitled without detriment or penalty to cancel or withdraw from any such contract with immediate effect by informing the agency of such cancellation or withdrawal; and

(iii) the agency shall not include the information in the publication,

and before entering into any such contract the agency shall inform the work-seeker of the right to cancel or withdraw from any such contract and the time limit for exercising that right;]

[F6 (e) where an agency proposes to include information about a work-seeker seeking employment as an actor, background artist, dancer, extra, musician, singer or other performer in a publication, for 30 days from the date of the agency and the work-seeker entering into a contract for such a service, whether written or oral and whether or not expressly mentioning fees permitted under this paragraph—

(i) the agency shall not charge a fee permitted by this paragraph to a work-seeker; and

(ii) the work-seeker shall be entitled without detriment or penalty to cancel or withdraw from any such contract with immediate effect by informing the agency of such cancellation or withdrawal,

and before entering into any such contract the agency shall inform the work-seeker of the right to cancel or withdraw from any such contract and the time limit for exercising that right;

(f) where an agency proposes to include information about a work-seeker referred to in sub-paragraph (e) in a publication, after the date of the agency and the work-seeker entering into the contract referred to in that sub-paragraph, the agency shall make available to the work-seeker a copy of the information and at the same time shall inform the work-seeker of the right to object, its effect and the time limit for exercising that right and for 7 days from the date on which the agency first makes available a copy of the information to the work-seeker—

(i) the agency shall not charge a fee permitted by this paragraph to a work-seeker;

(ii) the agency shall not include the information in the publication; and

(iii) the work-seeker is entitled to object to any aspect of the information relating to the work-seeker to be included in the publication by informing the agency of the objection;

(g) where sub-paragraph (f) applies and the work-seeker informs the agency of an objection, the agency shall not charge a fee or include the information in the publication until the work-seeker’s reasonable requirements have been addressed (even if addressing the requirements takes longer than the period referred to in that sub-paragraph); and

(h) where an agency includes, or proposes to include, information about a work-seeker in a publication, the work-seeker is entitled to a full refund of the fees paid if the publication including that information is not produced and made available to potential hirers within 60 days from the date on which payment is made by the work-seeker].

[F7 (5A) Where an agency makes available to the work-seeker a copy of the information referred to in paragraph (5)(f)—

(a) during the period referred to in paragraph (5)(e), where the period referred to in paragraph (5)(f) has elapsed without an objection or where the reasonable requirements of the work-seeker have been addressed, paragraph (5)(e) continues to apply; or

(b) after the period referred to in paragraph (5)(e) has elapsed, paragraph (5)(f) applies until the later of, the date on which the period referred to in paragraph (5)(f) has elapsed or, following an objection, the date on which the reasonable requirements of the work-seeker have been addressed.

(5B) Any reference in paragraph (5) to the inclusion of information about a work-seeker in a publication includes the inclusion of a photographic image or audio or video recording of the work-seeker in a publication.

(5C) Paragraph (5B) shall not be construed, when read with paragraph (5), as preventing an agency producing a photographic image or audio or video recording for the purpose of providing a copy of the image or recording to the work-seeker].

(6) The restrictions on charging fees to work-seekers contained in section 6(1)(a) of the Act shall not apply to any fee consisting of a charge to a work-seeker in respect of the purchase of or subscription for a publication containing information about employers provided that —

(a) this is the only work-finding service provided by the agency or any person connected with it to the work-seeker; and

(b) the agency has made available to the work-seeker a copy of a current edition of the publication (or, where the publication exists only in electronic form, given him access to a current edition of the publication) in advance of the work-seeker purchasing or subscribing for it.

(7) The restriction on charging fees to work-seekers contained in section 6(1)(a) of the Act shall not apply in respect of a fee charged by an agency for the service provided by it of finding or seeking to find a work-seeker employment where—

(a) the work-seeker in question is a company; and

(b) the employment is in an occupation other than any of those occupations listed in Schedule 3.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in reg. 26(5) inserted (1.10.2010) by The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/1782), regs. 1, 11(1)(a)

F2 Words in reg. 26(5)(a) inserted (1.10.2010) by The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/1782), regs. 1, 11(1)(b)

F3 Word in reg. 26(5)(c) omitted (1.10.2010) by virtue of The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/1782), regs. 1, 11(1)(c)

F4 Word in reg. 26(5)(c) substituted (6.4.2008) by The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2007 (S.I. 2007/3575), regs. 1, 7(a)

F5 Reg. 26(5)(d) substituted (1.10.2010) by The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/1782), regs. 1, 11(1)(d)

F6 Reg. 26(5)(e)-(h) inserted (1.10.2010) by The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/1782), regs. 1, 11(1)(e)

F7 Reg. 26(5A)-(5C) inserted (1.10.2010) by The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses (Amendment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/1782), regs. 1, 11(2)

Marginal Citations

M1 Section 6(1) as originally enacted was prospectively substituted by the Employment Relations Act 1999 (c. 26), Schedule 7, paragraphs 1 and 3.