The Chancellor and the Treasury must reallocate funds to support employment and recruitment market reforms, according to the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo).
In its Spending Review submission, APSCo has urged the Government to focus investment on targeted employment reforms that will drive economic growth, improve regulatory frameworks, and address critical skills shortages across key industries.
The organisation is calling for a reconsideration of the Employment Rights Bill, particularly the zero-hours contract reforms, to ensure they do not adversely impact the highly skilled contingent workforce. APSCo has also highlighted the urgent need for visa system improvements, urging the Government to allocate greater resources to the Home Office so that critical visa reforms can be delivered efficiently.
Beyond immigration, APSCo is advocating for enhanced regulatory oversight within employment, including reforms to self-employment status, continuous review of Off-Payroll rules, and the proper regulation of umbrella companies to prevent exploitation in the labour market. It is also calling for modernisation of the Agency Worker Regulations 2010 (AWR), specifically excluding highly paid contractors from rules originally designed for lower-paid agency workers.
Concerns over supply chain payment transparency have also been raised, with APSCo urging the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) to take stronger action on reasonable payment terms, make the Prompt Payment Code mandatory for large businesses, and amend relevant regulations to improve fairness in supply chain payments.
Recognising the UK’s most critical workforce shortages, APSCo is further calling for sector-specific employment reform funding, particularly in industries such as health and social care, where recruitment challenges continue to impact service delivery.
Tania Bowers, Global Public Policy Director at APSCo, stressed that targeted employment reforms are essential to strengthening the UK’s economy and ensuring a skilled and competitive workforce: “The recruitment sector is a UK success story – delivering innovation and opportunity to the UK workforce – and will be critical to delivering sustained economic growth into the future.
“We share the Government’s mission-led focus on sustainable development within the Treasury’s fiscal constraints. However, regulatory reforms in employment are essential to underpin this growth by strengthening the UK’s skills base.”
Bowers also warned that recent policy changes within the Employment Rights Bill have already negatively impacted hiring, urging the Government to carefully consider the long-term consequences during the Spending Review.
With businesses and recruitment agencies facing increasing challenges in sourcing skilled talent, APSCo is calling for a balanced package of reforms to enhance employment regulations, improve visa accessibility, and strengthen the UK’s labour market for highly skilled professionals.
Jamie Young
Jamie is Senior Reporter at Business Matters, bringing over a decade of experience in UK SME business reporting.
Jamie holds a degree in Business Administration and regularly participates in industry conferences and workshops.
When not reporting on the latest business developments, Jamie is passionate about mentoring up-and-coming journalists and entrepreneurs to inspire the next generation of business leaders.