Are your recruiters playing by the rules???
Posted 16.06.10
In the current economic climate the recruitment industry is constantly striving to improve its services; however it is becoming more and more frustrating for honest agencies to be undermined by other companies not playing by the rules.
We are finding it increasingly common when sending candidate CV’s to clients to discover they have already received their details from another agent, however the candidate is completely unaware of being put forward!!
It would seem we are not alone in our findings; in a recent discussion on Linked In over 300 people have discussed and commented on this situation.
Professional recruiters know that speaking to the candidate is crucial to the reputation and perception of their agency and the industry. The law however is on our side. The law in the UK states that you must get confirmation from a work-seeker that he or she is willing to work in the position before putting their details forward.
So how do these underhand agencies get away with these non ethical practices??
1) The main reason unfortunately is that they just ignore the rules and add terms into their terms of business that allow them to claim a fee for making an introduction because they were the first people to submit a CV.
2) Agencies use a blanket permission form allowing them to forward a CV for any roles without prior discussion.
3) Another key reason is that employers (clients) are unaware of the laws behind recruitment so do not realise this is illegal.
How can we change this??
You as our clients can be the key to stopping this type of practice. Firstly you must understand the requirements that agencies need to undertake when taking on an assignment.
Next, you must challenge all terms and conditions that don’t comply with the recruitment laws.
Finally you as a reputable employer must refuse to deal with non-compliant recruiters.
I hope this at least gives you an insight into some of the problems honest and upfront agencies come across in the world of recruitment.