§ Mr. ChidgeyTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what instructions his Department gives to jobcentres on the circumstances in which they can advertise job vacancies that exist at employment agencies. [23682]
§ Miss WiddecombeResponsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
79WLetter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. David Chidgey, dated 15 May 1995:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about what instructions people in Jobcentres follow when handling vacancies on behalf of employment agencies.You may be aware of the long standing agreement we have with the Federation of Recruitment and Employment Services (FRES). This enables my Jobcentres to accept individual vacancies for display from an employment agency or business recruiting people to be sub-contracted to companies.Following a review last year of our vacancy handling policy with agencies, we reached a new agreement with FRES on co-operation between Jobcentres and private employment agencies. Under the new arrangements, agencies may use Jobcentres to advertise vacancies which they have been contracted to fill.We are keen to introduce jobseekers to all the options available to help them in their search for work and we believe that the new arrangements give unemployed people access to wider range of opportunities.Further information is included in our publication, Helping People into Jobs, The Guide to Job Broking, copies of which are available in the Library.I hope this is helpful.