The nature and experience of agency working in Britain

Abstract

PurposeTo examine the experience of agency employment for workers and employers' use of agency workers in Britain to evaluate competing claims made about this form of work.Design/methodology/approachThis paper draws on results from three recent representative surveys of employment in Britain to examine the current nature and experience of agency work: the Labour Force Survey; the Workplace Employment Relations Survey and the Working in Britain, 2000 Survey.FindingsThe findings indicate that there is little evidence of the purported association between agency work and the emergence of the “knowledge economy”, as suggested by some. Turning to employers' use of agency labour, it is found that this has been driven by pressures relating to labour costs, possibly reflecting short‐term considerations. As for workers' experience of agency employment, this paper reports their dissatisfaction with many aspects of agency work, resulting in low levels of commitment and high anxiety about their work situation.Practical implicationsWhilst the use of agency workers may provide short‐term benefits for organisations there is considerable evidence that, in the absence of remedial action, a number of challenges are likely to emerge for human resource practitioners. In particular, organisations may incur longer‐term costs through extensive utilisation of employment agency labour.Originality/valueAgency work has grown rapidly but little is known about short‐term experiences or longer term implications. The paper fills a gap in knowledge about the current nature of agency work, and provides an empirical assessment of competing claims about this form of work