Factsheet 7 - When does equal treatment not apply?

Under the Agency Workers Regulations (AWR) agency workers are entitled to new rights to receive equal treatment in respect of pay, conditions relating to working hours, access to a client’s collective facilities and the right to be informed of vacancies at a client. However, agency workers who are engaged by an agency under a specific type of employment contract are not entitled to equal pay (though they will be entitled to the remaining equal treatment rights). This is sometimes referred to as the “Swedish derogation” or “pay between assignments” contract. This Factsheet will look at what rights employed temps will have and what contractual conditions must be met to exclude them from the equal pay provisions of the AWR.