Blog
Guidance for people running recruitment agencies
Practical writing on the Conduct Regulations, right to work checks and AWR compliance, from the team building AgencyOptix.
The AWR 12-week rule, explained
After 12 weeks in the same role with the same hirer, an agency worker becomes entitled to equal treatment on pay and core working conditions — and tracking that date accurately is entirely on the agency.
Covering a branch manager's absence without things quietly slipping
The gaps that show up during a manager's holiday or sick leave are rarely dramatic — they're small compliance and client-facing things that nobody else knew needed doing.
What has to be in a work seeker's agreement
This is the document that sets the actual terms between agency and candidate — and it needs to line up with what's promised in the Key Information Document, not contradict it.
How long do you need to keep right to work check records?
The general position is for the duration of employment plus a defined retention period after it ends — and being able to produce a specific record quickly matters as much as technically retaining it.
What agency workers are entitled to from day one, and what comes after 12 weeks
Day-one rights and post-qualifying-period rights are genuinely different in scope — conflating them is one of the more common AWR misunderstandings.
UK GDPR and candidate data: what recruitment agencies get wrong
Holding a CV for years after a candidate last engaged with the agency feels harmless — it isn't automatically compliant, and 'we might place them eventually' isn't a lawful basis on its own.
Transfer fees: when can a recruitment agency actually charge one?
A hirer taking on a temp permanently is one of the most common trigger points for a transfer fee dispute — and the rules around when it's chargeable are stricter than many agencies assume.
When do temporary workers need a DBS check?
It depends entirely on the role, not on whether someone's temporary or permanent — a common and risky assumption is that temp status alone changes what's required.