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“This month’s Report on Jobs shows that the labour market remains in a delicate state, although there remains a strong demand for temporary workers. This further highlights the crucial resource that agency work provides for employers, as well as the opportunities that it provides for workers.

"Within this context and in a period of economic instability, now is not the time to introduce legislation that could severely jeopardise the future of temporary work. As the Committee stages of the Private Members Bill on Agency Workers commence today (Wednesday, 7th May), employers and recruiters fear this could have a negative impact on the UK's agency model.

"Equal treatment measures between temps and permanent workers would be almost impossible to work out in practice and would add a completely unnecessary layer of bureaucracy for employers and agencies.  This in turn would limit job opportunities for thousands of workers at a time when it is crucial that we keep the labour market ticking in a challenging economy.”          

Alan Nolan, Director at KPMG comments:

“These latest figures show clearly that employers are shifting away from hiring permanent staff into a more temporary workforce as a way of dealing with the current economic uncertainty and financial crisis.

"Cost reduction is very much on the agenda of employers not only through the reduction of headcount but also through ways of reducing tax and national insurance contributions. We see this trend most clearly in the financial services sector. On the other hand, in the medical, engineering and construction sector, demand for permanent staff is still strong because of the ongoing skills shortages in these areas.”