The government has missed out on the opportunity to provide more meaningful answers to practical issues connected to AWR, according to Mark Hammerton, partner at international law firm Eversheds.

Following publication of final guidance on the regulations, Hammerton says: “Few changes have been made to the draft guidance released last month, which will be viewed as a lost opportunity by some hoping the guidance would provide more complete answers to the many tricky practical issues the regulations are likely to present.

“Even so, some useful additional clarification is offered, for example, the situation with respect to secondments. The guidance has clarified that individuals on secondment or loan to another organisation are likely to fall outside of the regulations since the supply of temporary labour in such an arrangement is not normally the main activity of the organisation involved.

“Importantly, this is not intended to extend opportunities for avoiding the regulations, as the guidance also makes clear. Examples cited include inter-group transfers of staff, where a worker is hired by various companies in the group or where one group company hires the worker via an agency and then the worker performs work for various companies in the group.

“In each case, if the most likely explanation for the arrangements is avoidance of the regulations, they will be open to challenge by an agency worker.”