The problem with individual employment rights is that no sooner are they introduced than firms find ways to get around them. Take, for instance, the laws relating to tips. Under the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act, firms must share all tips between workers, including temporary agency staff. The legislation was prompted by a public outcry over high street chains deducting money intended for waiting and kitchen staff. (For the laws relating to tips, see our Know Your Rights section.)
However, no sooner was the ink dry on the legislation than firms began to promote ways employers can get around the new laws. Once the laws relating to tips were introduced, Temper Works, which supplies workers to more than 5,000 companies, including Hard Rock Cafe, Alexandra Palace, and Claridge’s, immediately started promoting its workforce to restaurants, hotels, and bars on the basis that “they are not covered by the provisions of the new [tipping] legislation.”
The Netherlands-based firm, which opened an office in the UK in 2022, warns companies that agency workers “must now be included in tip-sharing schemes” but claims gig economy workers sourced through its website fall outside the legislation. “By engaging freelancers through Temper, businesses can continue to access flexible labour without the added costs and complexities associated with tip allocation for agency workers.”
Similarly, the same company has been promoting their 6,000-strong workforce as a means of undermining the minimum wage and the government’s proposals to ban zero-hours contracts. A document by Temper Works argues the changes “present significant challenges for businesses that have come to rely on the flexibility offered by zero-hour contracts.”
It adds the requirement to offer stable contracts means “overall labour costs are likely to rise.” It says firms should instead “use independent contractors as [a] pool of temporary workers,” which “allows businesses to benefit from a flexible workforce that can adapt to changing demands while ensuring that the business isn’t burdened with the obligations and restrictions associated with permanent employment contracts.”
Another briefing on Temper’s website claims it can help firms “survive the national minimum wage,” which rose to £12.21 in April. Temper says shifts can be as long or as short as a business wants: “We frequently see shifts of just 60-90 minutes to cover the lunchtime rush. You only need to pay for staffing precisely when required and only for the actual time worked on shift.”
In response to criticisms, the company argued, “Temper is a platform that has always operated, and will continue to operate, transparently and according to UK law,” it said in a statement. It said a Dutch court had found it was a platform for work, not an employment agency. It added that the functions built into the platform, including the ability to appoint substitutes to perform work, negotiate hourly rates, and turn down work, ensured it was “a marketplace for independent contractors.”
Should labour live up to its promises of banning zero-hours contracts, expect companies in the hospitality sector to follow Temper’s example and try to exploit bogus self-employment status as a means of avoiding the new legislation. While individual employment rights are welcome, only strong trade unions can truly defend workplace rights.