Labour hire workers plan 2019-20
This labour hire worker plan 2019-20 is part of SafeWork NSW's At risk workers' strategy 2018-2022.
Introduction
Labour hire is the employment relationship between a labour supply agency, the employee (hired labour) and the client (host organisation/ employer). Labour hire workers are skilled and unskilled people who are hired for short or long-term positions. They are employed by the labour hire organisation, not the company to whom they provide labour.
What we know
Labour hire workers in Australia are estimated to represent 1.2 to 2.5 percent of the workforce. (Source: Economic Development Committee, Inquiry into Labour Hire Employment in Victoria, Parliament of Victoria, June 2005.)
The most common occupational groups for labour hire workers were labourers (21 percent) and technicians and trades workers (19 percent). (Source: '6333.0 – Characteristics of Employment, Australia, August 2014’, Australian Bureau of Statistics, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/ all primary mainfeatures/EF3BF9BDA5BF304ECA25801F00186541?opendocument; retrieved: May 2016.)
There are 7,152 ‘enterprises’ in the Temporary Staff Services sector in Australia in 2017–18 of which 32.7 percent (2,338) are located in NSW. (Source: IBISWorld Industry Report N7212 Temporary Staff Services in Australia, IBISWorld, Feb 2018.)
Who we are working with
Key stakeholders include:
- Recruitment, Consulting & Staffing Association Australia and New Zealand (RCSA)
- NSW Nurses and Midwives Association
- Apprentice Employment Network NSW & ACT.
What are the issues (risk areas)
| At risk group | Highest risk factor | 2nd factor | 3rd factor | 4th factor | 5th factor | 6th factor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour hire workers | Commonly assigned higher risk work | Limited understanding work health and safety rights and obligations as a worker | Lack of communication, consultation and coordination between the labour hire organisation and the host employer | Inexperience in the job and/or at the individual workplace | Labour hire company not conducting pre-work site visits | Reluctance to speak up and ‘make waves’ due to multiple factors |
How are we addressing the issues
This is the second year of a six-year strategy that will be implemented in partnership with industry and key stakeholders. For 2019–20, we will:
| Product development | Stakeholder engagement and collaboration | Research | Information promotion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Develop specific industry products | Collaborate with key stakeholders | Gig economy | Attend events |
| Develop case studies | Support other RoadMap Programs/Projects | SafeWork NSW data | Training material |
| Attends state-wide community events | Other regulators | Promote project activities via the media |
What success looks like
- Workers engaged in labour hire, their host employers and agencies have an increased knowledge of their work health and safety rights and obligations.
- Host employers and agencies have an increased understanding of how to manage work health and safety issues faced by workers engaged in labour hire.
- Workers engaged in labour hire, their host employers and agencies know where to access work health and safety information.
- Industry, community and SafeWork have a better understanding of the changing work environment and the impact on workers engaged in labour hire, their host employers and agencies.
Catalogue No. SW08865