Sub-contracting, the use of Employment Business Labour and Self-Employed Operatives

Sub-contract employment of labour is only permitted through a bona fide firm engaged in electrical contracting. In the case of electrical sub-contract work, the sub-contracting firm which supplies labour must be a Member of the Joint Industry Board or be otherwise approved by the Joint Industry Board for the provision of specialist systems and equipment.

When Employment Business Labour is used the conditions under 2.2 will apply.

1.2 Cabling and Jointing Sub-Contracting

Only firms included in the JIB Register of Cabling & Jointing Contractors may be employed upon cabling and jointing work by JIB Members. This does not preclude any electrical contractor carrying out the cabling and jointing of his contract with his own directly employed labour which remains JIB policy. The only Trade Union recognised for collective bargaining purposes under these Rules is the Unite (Amicus section).

2 Use of Employment Business Labour

2.1 Preface

The use of Employment Business Labour in the Electrical Contracting Industry has always been seen as detrimental to the aims and objectives of the Joint Industry Board and potentially damaging to the standards set by the Industry which has tried to ensure the safe and competent delivery of electrical installations in the Industry.

However, as:

2.1.1 firms within the Industry do have short-term needs for labour which for practical purposes cannot always be met by directly-employed personnel

2.1.2 individual operatives have chosen to be placed by Employment Business Labour and;

2.1.3 the environment currently and in the foreseeable future will ensure the continuing use of Agency labour by Member Companies the National Working Rules have needed to be changed to recognise this situation subject to certain conditions.

2.2 Conditions of the Use of Employment Business Labour

It is JIB policy to encourage the direct employment of labour by Member Firms as it is considered that this provides the essential structure which enables training and safety standards to be maintained and for the development of people. Consequently, the following conditions must be observed before Agency labour may be used

2.2.1 JIB Member Firms must make every effort to offer any vacancy on a directly-employed basis under the JIB National Working Rules.

2.2.2 No directly-employed operative may be made redundant whilst any Employment Business operatives are being used except where acceptable alternative work has been offered to, and refused by, the directly-employed operative or where the requirement for specific skills or the conditions of site employment make the retention of certain Employment Business operatives essential for the effective conclusion of the work involved.

2.2.3 To ensure that labour provided by an Employment Business meets the required standards and complies with the labour requested by a JIB Member Firm any Employment Business used by a JIB Member Firm must participate in the JIB’s Industrial Information Service. A record of Agencies currently participating in the Scheme will be held at the Offices of the JIB.

Additionally an Agency must have an appropriate industrial relations policy and an agreement with Unite (Amicus section) compatible with the ethos of the JIB Agreement.

2.2.4 Any operatives supplied by a participating Agency to a JIB Member Firm must hold a current and valid ECS/JIB Card denoting the appropriate electrical discipline(s) and the standard of skills.

2.2.5 At no time during the course of a contract or a project, under normal circumstances, can the number of agency operatives be in the majority of the total electrical labour force as this would be deemed to be detrimental to the aims and objectives of the Joint Industry Board.

2.2.6 Any dispute arising from the implementation of the above conditions of the use of Agency labour must be referred to the Joint Industry Board immediately for resolution. All parties will be bound by the outcome of the proceedings.

3 Temporary Use of Self-Employed Operatives

3.1 Preface

“The principal objects of the JIB are to regulate the relations between employers and employees engaged in the Industry and to provide all kinds of benefits for persons concerned with the Industry in such ways as the JIB may think fit, for the purpose of stimulating and furthering the improvement and progress of the Industry, for the mutual advantage of the employers and employees engaged therein, and in particular for the purpose aforesaid, and in the public interest, to regulate and control employment and productive capacity within the Industry and the levels of skill and proficiency, wages and welfare benefits of persons employed in the Industry."

The temporary use of self-employed operatives has been seen to lie outside these objectives which were based on the traditional employer/employee relationship under a “contract of employment”.

However as,

3.1.1 firms within the Industry do have short term needs for labour and, in a period when work is plentiful, these needs cannot always be met by directly employed personnel;

3.1.2 some operatives have chosen to operate in a self-employed capacity; the JIB is prepared to countenance a limited and controlled temporary use of self-employed operatives on the following basis:-

3.2 Recruitment of temporary self-employed operatives

It is JIB Policy to encourage the direct employment of labour as it is considered that this provides the essential structure which enables training & safety standards to be maintained and for the development of people. Consequently, the following conditions must be observed before temporary self-employed operatives may be used:

3.2.1 Every effort must be made to offer any vacancy, no matter how short term on a directly employed basis under the JIB National Working Rules.

3.2.2 No directly-employed operative may be made redundant whilst any temporary self-employed operatives are being used except where acceptable alternative work has been offered to, and refused by, the directly-employed operative or where the requirement for specific skills or the conditions of site employment make the retention of certain temporary self-employed operatives essential for the effective conclusion of the work involved.

3.3 Conditions of use

The use of any temporary self-employed operative(s) is subject to the following conditions:

3.3.1 Any temporary self-employed operative must:

3.3.1.1 have been JIB graded or approved for inclusion under the appropriate qualification of the Electrotechnical Certification Scheme and be the holder of a current ECS/JIB Card.

3.3.1.2 carry Public Liability Insurance to levels prescribed from time to time by the JIB.

3.3.2 Temporary self-employed operatives must be properly supervised by a suitably qualified directly employed supervisor.

Note:

The legal, insurance and taxation obligations of the self-employed person and the firm, are highly complex areas of law and should be dealt with by professional, legal, insurance and accountancy advisers. Such advice is one of the services provided by both the ECA and Unite (Amicus section) to their members.