Almost 20% of UK businesses employ temporary staff and 11% have freelance workers, according to the 2004 Workplace Employment Relations Survey, which was published this week.

The survey found 19% of workplaces used personality tests and 46% of workplaces used performance tests for employee selection purposes.

The report was a collaborative venture between the Department for Trade and Industry, the Advisory Conciliation Arbitration Service, the Policy Studies Institute and the Economic and Social Research Council. It collected information from more than 3,000 managers, 1,000 employee representatives, and more than 22,000 employers.

It found that small firms are more likely than medium-sized or large companies to rely on informal channels of recruitment, 13% of small firms relied on direct approaches, recommendations or word of mouth, compared with 5% of medium-sized firms and 2% of large firms.

Workplaces in small companies were also less likely to use competency or attitude tests during recruitment.