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Temporary assignments

Welcome to Time Recruitment Services, we hope you will enjoy your time temping with us.

Temporary work can often be a difficult way of earning a living as you are usually expected to perform at the same level of effectiveness as a permanent member of staff...instantly! These notes are intended as a guide to working with us and hopefully will cover most eventualities. Please read them BEFORE you go out on your first assignment with us and always call us if you need any extra information.

Our aim, with your help, is to become one of Edinburgh's leading Recruitment Specialists with a 'no nonsense' approach and a reputation for a quality service.

You are as important to us as our clients and for this reason we guarantee regular communication and would appreciate regular communication too. Please keep us informed: -

• Of your availability
• When you are not available
• Appointments you may have pending
• If you are happy with your booking
• Change of address or bank details (by email / in writing)

We are committed to providing a one-to-one friendly and professional service to every member of our team of temporary workers and an honest two-way communication between us is essential to your success, and ours.

Caroline Burns, your Temporary Controller at Time Recruitment, will telephone you with details of assignments, which hopefully will be of interest to you. If you agree to the assignment this will also be confirmed in writing, both to yourself and the client concerned.

Please only agree to an assignment if you are committed to it.

If, on an exceptional occasion, you are unable to attend the assignment, we will understand it is for a genuine reason - please remember to call us first thing in the morning so that we can advise the client and arrange alternative cover for them.

We must be informed of any time off from temporary assignments, which includes dental appointments and interviews. Please ask the client if this is convenient for them also.

Whilst in the assignment, you are effectively an ambassador for Time Recruitment and although you may be an experienced temporary worker please accept the following reminders under the next section "Your Assignment".

We will tell you as much as possible about your booking. When we offer the assignment to you please check that we have given you the following details:

• Full name and address of Company
• Your hours of work
• The type of business/service
• Details of the location, any landmarks, etc
• The name of the person you will report to
• The skills required, the equipment you will use
• Your rate of pay
• Length of booking

PLEASE always let us know if something isn't working. Many of the problems which can arise when temping can be solved by a phone call from us to the company.

You can make life easier for yourself by asking questions. ASK to see a sample layout of letters, invoices and reports. ASK if your are not sure who has priority in terms of work. ASK someone to repeat their name if you are unsure. These pointers may help you to become more than 'just a temp', will increase your status and so your enjoyment of the job.

• Ask where the kettle and loo are if you are not shown.
• Introduce yourself by name and not just 'the temp'.

Working with PCs

A workstation must meet minimum requirements e.g.:

• Your chair must have adjustable height and back support
• Keyboards and screens should be approximately adjusted for your comfort
• Bright lights should not be reflected ont he screen
• You should not be looking directly at bright lights
• You should have enough workspace to take whatever documents you need

Overtime

If you are asked to work more than 37½ hours per week, call Caroline Burns immediately, as she will need to authorise overtime payments with the client. If you do not do this we will be unable to process unauthorised overtime payments. We do not dictate compulsory overtime payments to our clients, leaving the decision up to the individual company.

Rates of pay

Rates of pay will be competitive; it is after all why we all work! The rate, however, may vary depending on the client with which the assignment is undertaken.

The minimum statutory leave entitlement increased from 1 October 2007 and this applies to temporary workers on contracts for services.  These changes are due to the Working Time Regulations 1998 being amended by the Working Time (Amendment) Regulations 2007.

The minimum statutory leave entitlement per annum has been amended as follows:

From 1 October 2007 the minimum annual leave will be increased to 4.8 weeks (24 days for full-time workers).

From 1 April 2009 the minimum annual leave will be increased to 5.6 weeks (28 days for full-time workers).

For the purposes of calculating entitlement to leave under this clause, the leave year commences on the date you start your assignment.

If you are ready to take leave please check with Time Recruitment what your accrued entitlement is, put your request in writing and "paid holiday" on your timesheet if appropriate.

Paid leave only arises in accordance with the [Working Time Regulations 1998] and is paid on the termination of an assignment or when holiday is taken.

Full information is provided in the Terms of Engagement which you will receive when accepting your first booking.

Tax details

Before submission of your first timesheet, we require your National Insurance number and your P45. If you do not have a P45 you must sign a P46 as a temporary measure (or a P38 if you are a student) in order that you are taxed correctly. Please ensure that we have your full bank details.

Social

Social events will be organised throughout the year and we will advise you of them. If you think we are taking too long to do this - please feel free to remind Caroline.

Questions

Please remember that you really are not 'just a number' and should you need to ask us anything even unrelated to an employment issue, please feel free to contact us and if we can help we will.