Jobsites in the UK look set to be given exemption from legislation that
would have made it almost impossible for them to operate in this country.
Alan Johnson, employment relations minister, hinted in a statement to
Parliament last week that jobsites will not have to comply with the Employment
Agencies Act.
The Association of Online Recruiters and the Recruitment and Employment
Confederation (REC) were concerned that if job boards were forced to comply
with the Act they would be put out of business.
Sites such as Totaljobs, Monster and Workthing would have had to identify
all job applicants through face-to-face meetings or passports and birth certificates
and have access to copies of all claimed qualifications.
Bill Shipton, chairman of the Association of Online Recruiters, was
relieved. "I think the noises being made by the minister are encouraging
and he recognises we’re a special case," he said.
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Marcia Roberts, director of external relations at the REC, said: "We
believe that the DTI will come to a sensible position that will allow the
online recruitment industry to continue to operate without cumbersome
regulations."
