A move by MPs to prevent employers from recruiting agency workers as strike breakers has been rejected this week.

An amendment was tabled by opposition MPs at a committee stage meeting in Parliament to discuss the Trade Union Bill on Tuesday. 

The amendment would have blocked secondary legislation to prevent an agency worker from performing the duties of an employee taking part in industrial action. This practice is currently prevented by Regulation 7 of the Conduct Regulations of the Employment Agencies Business Regulations 2003 (Conduct Regulations), which stands to be repealed using the secondary legislation. 

In addition, the amendment would make recruitment agencies as well as employers responsible for any breach of the law.

Recruiters expressed caution over the government’s plan to repeal Regulation 7 when government began a consultation over the proposal this summer.

The Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) said at the time it was not convinced that putting agencies and temporary workers into the middle of industrial relations situations was a good idea for agencies, workers or their clients. The government is yet to report its findings from the consultation, which ended in early September. 

Commenting on the opposition MPs’ amendment, Matthew Lewis, head of the Leeds employment practice at law firm Squire Patton Boggs, told Recruiter the rejection of the amendment was good news for recruiters given they would bear greater responsibility for breaches of the legislation.

The government’s proposal to allow employers to recruit agency staff as strike breakers was first put forward in the Conservative Party’s election manifesto in May. It was since added as secondary legislation to the Trade Union Bill announced in May's Queen's Speech. 

And Jacqueline McDermott, consultant solicitor at law firm Keystone Law, told Recruiter the government’s proposal could be enshrined into law despite opposition from Scottish National Party and Labour MPs. 

McDermott explained the bill must pass through both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. If no agreement is reached there is provision for government to force the bill through so it receives royal assent.

However, according to Christopher Tutton, partner at law firm Irwin Mitchell, given the Trade Union Bill is likely to reduce the likelihood of industrial action, agency workers crossing picket lines may well be a rare sight. 

“It should be borne in mind that the Trade Union Bill is drafted with the intention to curtail the ability to strike generally,” he said, “so industrial action levels may reduce going forward.”