Plaid Cymru - The Party of Wales in the European Parliament today criticised the Conservative, Labour and Liberal MEPs for creating a loophole in EU legislation which aims to crack down on rogue employment agencies.

Though MEPs generally endorsed European Commission proposals to extend full-time employment rights to the thousands of temporary staff employed by agencies in Wales, they also adopted a proposal to give member states the right to grant exemptions from this principle.

Jill Evans MEP, who is the leader of Plaid Cymru - The Party of Wales in the European Parliament and a member of the Parliament’s Committee for Employment and Social Affairs, said:

"I've given my full backing to this proposal to extend minimum working standards to all, whether they are employed on a full-time or temporary basis and whether they are employed directly or through an agency. I regret very much that member states now are allowed to be exempted from this principle. This could become a loophole in workers protection on the European level."

"Many employment agencies are highly regarded and provide a good example of best practice. But there are those who bring the industry into disrepute by wriggling out of the regulations and take advantage of some of the most vulnerable in society. Today's vote will permit them to face up to their obligations."

"The current situation for many agency workers is characterised by insecurity, low pay, scarce training opportunities and a work/life balance that may well actually be adversely affected by a very unstructured and unfavourable set of flexible working arrangements. It is hardly a suitable environment for taking positive steps forward into more secure and better-paid areas of the labour market. Therefore the Directive on Temporary Agency Workers is urgently needed in order to have a level of protection and rights that temporary agency workers currently do not have: equal treatment and a level of protection that will go some way to redress the balance of flexibility that currently favours the agencies and user-enterprises almost exclusively."

Diwedd/Ends.