May

UK recruiters are optimistic about the future of the industry as we head into 2014, with 74% declaring that this year has been better than 2012, and 18% stating that business has remained on an even keel. Mercury xRM software developer and recruitment expert Crimson Limited, polled 88 businesses from its recruitment partner network on their business levels for 2013 and found that three quarters of recruiters in the UK were celebrating a good year for business, with just two percent of recruiters stating that 2013 had been a poor year. Eleven percent described 2013 as a 'fantastic ' year for business. These figures highlight the optimism within the recruitment industry at a time when the wider UK economy is starting to show signs of recovery and growth. In fact, the British economy is rising faster than any other major advanced economy in the world and 400,000 jobs are expected to be created in the UK between now and the end of the financial year in March 2014. The jobs market in Scotland is particularly booming with vacancy figures back to the number recorded at the pre-recession level. This upward trend in job creation is creating tougher competition for the highest quality staff and turning businesses towards specialist recruitment agencies, best placed to fill highly skilled vacancies.

Following a public consultation in the summer 2013, the government announced its intention to make changes to the civil penalty scheme to prevent illegal working. Details were set out in its response to the consultation in October 2013. The changes are intended to encourage and support employers to fulfill their duty to make the correct checks on their employees to ensure that they have the right to work in the UK. They came into force on 16th May 2014. Employers have had a duty to prevent illegal working since 1997 by carrying out specified documents checks on people before they employ them. since 2008, this duty has been underpinned by a civil penalty scheme. Under section 15 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality act 2006 an employer may be liable for a civil penalty if they employ someone who does not have the right to undertake the work in question.
On 16 May 2014 changes came into force to strengthen and simplify the civil penalty scheme for employers. This includes changes to make it easier for the employers to conduct right to work checks on their employees, as well as ensuring a more robust response to the buniness which employ illegal workers.
To simplify the right to work check, the Home Office
� have begun to reduce the range of acceptable documents that employers may have to check,
�reduced the frequency of the follow-up document checks for most employees with limited permission to be in the UK,
�doubled the grace period for the right to work checks for employees acquired as a result of a Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) to 60 days, and
�are simplifying their guidance and improving their support for employers.
Illegal working is the main incentive for illegal immigration and often results in abuse and exploitation, the mistreatment of illegal migrant workers, tax evasion and illegal housing conditions. It can undercut legitimate business and have an adverse impact on people who are lawfully in the UK.
To get tougher on employers of illegal workers the Home Office are doubling the maximum civil penalty for the employment of an illegal worker to ?20,00. The increased maximum penalty better reflects the harm caused by employing illegal workers, the costs to wider society and the unfair economic advantage derived from the activity. The Home Office are also using the Immigration Bill to make it easier to enforce the payment of civil penalties in the courts.
Full details of the changes and the new requirements are set out in the Home Office guidance.
These measures do not make employers responsible for immigration control. The Home Office remains the first line of enforcement against illegal immigration and works with other agencies across government to take effective action against labour market abuse.

"The first law in the nation to require the widespread drug testing of health care employees may be on its way to passage, as the New Hampshire House of Representatives has passed by a vote of 289-48, without debate, ""an Act relative to the drug-free workplaces for licensed health care facilities and providers."" It seeks to foster the safety and protection of patients and health care workers ""by promoting and maintaining a substance-free work environment and discouraging the illegal use and diversion of controlled substances by health care workers."" The measure (H.B. 597-FN) would mandate that licensed entities establish ""procedures for drug testing which shall include, at a minimum, testing where reasonable suspicion exists,"" as part of a broader ""drug misuse and diversion prevention policy"" providing for the ""prevention, detection, and resolution of controlled substance abuse, misuse and diversion."" The facility would have to designate an employee or interdisciplinary team of employees to be responsible for the policy. The bill is intended to offer flexibility to health care facilities and providers ""to develop and adopt a workplace standard appropriate to its size, the nature of the services provided, and its particular setting."" "