Lawspeed bemused by APSCO umbrella company criticism
Recent APSCO criticism of the Lawspeed article “Umbrellas gearing up to compete?” published on 13th May, was surprising, says Lawspeed.
In its article “APSCO supports umbrella company members” on 23rd May APSCO has said that its umbrella company members all deny any intent to compete and suggested that the Lawspeed article was both without foundation and engendered panic. Lawspeed’s article pointed to evidence that some umbrellas were gearing up to compete with agencies in various different ways, and identified potential risks.
Ravi Murphy, client services director at Lawspeed, said “The article was based on actual evidence which I and some of our clients are privy to. I am puzzled why APSCO did not ask us about the evidence before commenting publicly on behalf of all of its umbrella members.”
Murphy continued: “Our article was a legitimate analysis leading to advice that agencies can take to protect themselves against a specific risk. The solution, to include suitable non-compete clauses in agency umbrella agreements, are common in commercial contracts, are easy for agencies to apply and it is hard to see why any umbrella company would justifiably object. This straightforward solution would maintain confidence, not the opposite.
“However I am glad that the issue is now in the open and that, as expected, many umbrella companies will want to demonstrate that they are not competing. It is important for our clients and the industry that umbrella relations are not destabilised, and that there is transparency.”
Lawspeed is staffed by legal professionals and has been advising businesses operating in the recruitment industry since 1997.
Adrian, a highly experienced lawyer, founded Lawspeed in 1997. He is responsible for developing our extensive portfolio of products and services, including the widely used Lawspeed contract templates. Adrian is an expert on “recruitment law” and specialises in contracts, regulatory compliance, employment status and dispute handling. He is chair of the trade body the Association of Recruitment Consultancies, the only lawyer lead recruitment trade body in the UK. Adrian and his co-director Ravi devised Standards in Recruitment as a vehicle for helping drive up standards and compliance in the industry.
Adrian is our lead in discussions with the government over regulatory evolution. Apart from assisting with client support, Adrian’s primary role is research and development into methods of business delivery, our latest service Proterms being his most recent project. Adrian heads our IR35 lawyers team.