Economic Report
Enabling work, adaptation,
security & prosperity
2018 edition

ABOUT THE WORLDEMPLOYMENT CONFEDERATION
The World Employment Confederation is the authoritative voiceof the employment industry at the global level. It connects
labour market enablers from 50 countries and 7 major workforce
solutions companies with a unique network that brings together
international policy makers, social partners, the academic world
and other relevant stakeholders.
Through its policy work the World Employment Confederation
strives for recognition of the employment industry's economic
and social role. It leads the way in defining high employment andrecruitment standards and practices and is a thought leader inshaping futureproof and competitve labour markets.
it acts as an advisor to the employment industry on new ways ofworkforce sourcing & deployment. With analysis and researchcovering 50 labour markets it is able to provide members with abroad range of services including support in capacity building andbusiness development around the globe.
Members of the World Employment Confederation represent
a wide range of HR services, including agency work, direct
recruitment, career management, RPO and MSP.

www.wecglobal.org/economicreport2018
All rights reserved © WEC 2018

Enabling WorkCONTENTS

21

Provide quality and meaningful work Provide a stepping stone

Foreword4
Denis Pennel
World Employment Confederation
Managing Director
Enabling Adaptation
Key findings 

7Regional focus 

17North America 
17South America
18
Europe19
APAC20

1- Enabling Work
Provide quality and meaningful work Provide a stepping stone

2- Enabling Adaptation
Facilitate work transitions and social mobility
Adapt workforce to production needs
Improve employability by upskilling
Facilitate work transitions and social mobility 
Improve employability by upskilling

3- Enabling Security
Secure access to talent 
Increase business competitive­ness
Deliver portable rights

4- Enabling Prosperity
Reduce unemployment
Increase inclusiveness and diversity
Increase work income

33

Facilitate work transitions and social mobility
Adapt workforce to production needs
Improve employability by upskilling
Facilitate work transitions and social mobility 
Improve employability by upskilling

21
22
27

33
34
37
38
39
40

Enabling Security

41

Secure access to talent 
Increase business competitive­ness
Deliver portable rights

41
42
45
48

51
52
54
56

Annexes57

Enabling Prosperity
Reduce unemployment
Increase inclusiveness and diversity
Increase work income51Foreword
In 2017, the World Employment Confederation celebrated its 50th anniversary.
The employment industry has certainly come a long way since 1967. From thoseinitial days, the World Employment Confederation has grown today into a globalorganisation that numbers 1.9 million labour market specialists across 50 countries
and that delivers a wide range of HR services, from agency work and direct
recruitment to career management, RPO and MSP.
Thanks to the combined 143.000 employment agencies operating under theumbrella of the World Employment Confederation, the industry builds open,
inclusive, sustainable and enabling labour markets by helping people into work and by
supporting companies in navigating in safe and agile environments.
In 2016 the members of the World Employment Confederation helped 56 million
people to find jobs, including more than 14 million young adults, facilitating theirintegration into the world of work and laying the foundation for their career.
Meanwhile, the employment industry continued to evolve worldwide, benefitingfrom a gradual pick-up of the world economy. The report estimates the employment
industry generated € 491 billion in revenue worldwide in 2016, supporting millions oforganisations to grow their business by finding the skilled talent they need.
Published annually, our Economic Report aims at giving a comprehensive pictureof the employment industry and labour market trends in general. It shows how themembers of the World Employment Confederation act as labour market enablers,playing a key role in delivering work, adaptation, security and prosperity to societies. I
hope you find the report interesting and informative and invite you to browse throughits content.
Should you have any questions regarding the facts and figures published in thisEconomic Report, do not hesitate to get in touch with the World Employment
Confederation’s Head Office at info@wecglobal.org
Denis Pennel
Managing Director

4

WEC Economic Report 2017

Nem de porum natium
quae nest, sae eatemquema ne nos sit as eveni quiqui odictorero iunt volupta

DENIS PENNELWorld Employment
Confederation
Managing Director

KEY FINDINGSCreate more
work
opportunities
Providestepping stone

Enable 56

millionpeople tosecuring access totalentReduceundeclared
work &
unemployment

Support 3 million

ENABLING
SECURITYUSTE
DL

Increasebusiness
competitivenesspeople during
their career transitionor professional
development

R
ISO
V
AD

Improve
employability by
upskilling

Adapt workforce
to production
needs

S

companies in

Increase work
income &purchasing
power

ENABLING
PROSPERITY

Help 5 million

LABOUR
MARKET
ENABLERSILITY CREATORSAG

Enrich GDP by
sales revenues

ENABLING
ADAPTATION

Enabling prosperity:
Driving growth in the economy creating
a sense of pride.

Facilitate worktransitions andsocial mobility

INTEGRATO
CIAL
RS
SO

TR

Enabling security:
Being a trusted labour market advisor
to workers and companies and building
trust.

Improve
access to &transparencyof labourmarketENABLING
WORK

Enabling work:
Acting as social integrators and inspiring
hope among workers and companies.
Enabling adaptation:
Working as agility creators and building
stakeholder confidence

Increaseinclusion &diversity

find work

OWTH DRIVERSGR

As labour market enablers, members of
the World Employment Confederation
contribute to better functioning labour
markets by:

Providequality &meaningful
work

ABO
UR MARKET

Act ascareeragent

Secureaccess totalentProvide worklife balance

Deliver
portablerightsHelp 14 million

young people
navigate the labour
marketWEC Economic Report 2017

5

REPRESENTING A BROAD RANGE OF HR SERVICES
Members of the World Employment Confederation cover a wide range of HR services, including agency work, direct recruitment, career
management, RPO and MSP. Through all HR services, the employment industry increases labour market participation rates, it helps companies
remain competitive within the global economy and creates decent jobs that would otherwise not exist.

Supply & demand of work

LABOUR MARKET INTELLIGENCETALENT ACQUISITIONPLACEMENTADVISORY SERVICES

Regulatory environment

Sourcing candidates

Skills mapping

Employee referrals

Labour market surveys

Skills assessment

Thought leadership

Testing

Agency Work
Direct (perm & temporary)

CAREER MANAGEMENT

Off boarding

Contract for servicing

HR Consulting

Self-employed

Workforce Analytics

Apprenticeship

Strategic Workshop Planning

RPO
MSP

MANAGED SERVICES

On boarding

BPO

Job Search councelling
Capacity building
Process excellence

Human Cloud

Training

Payrolling

Outplacement
Career Transitions
Welfare-to-Work
Coaching
Compensation & Benefits
Leadership Development
Performance Assessment

6

WEC Economic Report 2017

Key findings
THE EMPLOYMENT INDUSTRY
IN 2016
In 2016, the employment industry generated €491 billion in revenue worldwide, mostly driven by
agency work accounting for € 350 billion. Agency work is growing in many markets in Europe with
the Netherlands, France, Germany, Italy and Spain all experiencing significant growth comparedto the previous year and compensating for a slowdown in the UK. Japan continues to experience
accelerated growth in agency work (8% compared to 7% the year before) while growth in the US,
the largest agency work market, remains stable. The direct recruitment market rose slightly to € 37.8
billion, confirming its trend towards a more profitable and faster-growing HR service.
In 2016, both MSP and RPO continued to grow, with an increase of 11% and 13% compared to lastyear, generating € 97 billion and € 3,4 billion respectively, although such growth is flattened by theEuro/US Dollar exchange rate.
This overview reflects the positive role that HR services companies play for economies, individuals
and enterprises. Acting as social integrators, agility creators, trusted labour market advisors andgrowth drivers, the 143.000 employment agencies the World Employment Confederation gathers –supported by its 1.9 million staff, give hope, develop confidence, build trust and deliver pride to bothindividuals and user companies.

*Exchange rate US dollar – Euro: 0,83

WEC Economic Report 2017

7

GLOBAL MARKET SIZE (SALES REVENUE)€ 350 bn

Agency Work

Global market size of

MSP**€ 491 billion(sales revenue)

Direct Recruitment€ 97 bn€ 37.8 bn
RPO**

Career Management

In 2016, the employment industry generated€491 billion in sales revenue worldwide.
5 countries (the USA, Japan, the UK, Germany
and China ) made up the majority of therevenue. Of all revenue generated in 2016, 71%
was from agency work, 20% from MSP, 8%
from direct recruitment, with the remaining 1%
coming from RPO and Career Management.

** Figures marked with two asterisks refer to data provided by Staffing Industry Analysts

8

WEC Economic Report 2017

€ 2.7 bn

€ 3.4 bn

143,000
employment and recruitment
agencies

and

1,9 million
internal staff to help people
navigate the labour market

WEC Economic Report 20179

IN 2016, THE EMPLOYMENT INDUSTRY HELPED AROUND 56 MILLIONPEOPLE ACCESS LABOUR MARKETS AROUND THE GLOBE
Agency work headcounts

Agency Work Headcounts
41 million individuals

Global Number ofplacements

56.5 million

MSP
8 million individuals

Direct Recruitment
4,17 million individuals
Career Management
3 million individuals
RPO
0,3 million individuals

USA
China
Japan
FranceIndia*UK*
GermanySouth Africa*
PolandNetherlands
Italy
Belgium
Spain
Australia*
BrazilColombia
CanadaSwitzerland
Czech Republic*
Chile
SwedenMexicoArgentina
Hungary
Ireland*
Portugal*
New Zealand*
Finland
NorwayAustria
Russia*Morocco*Romania
Luxembourg
Denmark*
Croatia*
GreeceBulgaria
Estonia14.490.000
8.760.000
2.630.325
2.200.000
2.100.000
1.198.000
990.792
900.000
797.779770.136650.000
624.851619.923550.000
482.186478.156450.000
317.624250.000
200.000
155.000
153.881131.000
124.576120.000
118.000
105.000
100.000
100.000
79.25975.76762.00057.33826.14520.64716.00014.15210.0325.000* Figures marked with an asterisk refer to 201510

WEC Economic Report 2017

THE AGENCY WORK MARKET
Top 15 Countries ranked by sales revenue in Agency WorkAs illustrated in these rankings, the 15 largest
countries in terms of revenue in agency work
represented 90% of the global market in2016. The US market accounts for 42% of the
global market and is by far the largest.

USA € 122.2 bn

Japan € 43.7 bn

The USA, Japan, China, Germany and theUK account for 75% of total revenue, clearly
showing agency work is still dominated by ahandful of countries worldwide.

China € 33.0 bn
Germany € 32.2 bn

Australia** € 11.9 bn

France € 18.9 bn

Italy € 8.5 bn

Netherlands* € 13.4 bn
UK € 31.8 bn

Switzerland € 6.5 bn
India** € 3.6 bn

Canada** € 5.8 bn
Belgium € 5.4 bn

Spain € 4.15 bn
South Africa** € 2.9 bn

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

* NL figures are an estimate, not actual** Figures marked with two asterisks refer to data provided by Staffing Industry Analysts

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

WEC Economic Report 201711

THE AGENCY WORK MARKET
Penetration rate by country (2016)
Although agency work can be found on all 5 continents,
the United States, Europe, Japan, Australia and China
represent most of the total turnover. This table gives an
overview of the penetration rate of agency work in thebest performing countries. The success of agency work
can be explained by the fact that it creates added value forthe worker, the employer, the labour market and society
as a whole.

UK: 4.1%
3.6%

USA: 2.1%

3.3%
3.3%

3.0%
2.6%

2.4%

2.4%

Japan: 2%

2.2%
2.0%

1.5%
1.8%

2.0%

Global: 1.6%

1.5%
1.3%
1,3%
0.8%

1,2%

1.1%
1,1%

0.7%
0.9%
0.9%

0,7%

0.7%

0.6%

0.5%

0.6%

0.5%

0.3%

0,4%

0.2%
0.2%
0.1%

UK AU* NL NZ* LU HU* GER BE FR US JP PT* CH AT* SE* ZA* FIITPL NO CH CZ* MX* BR DK* CA* SP CO* CR ES CL* AR RO LT MA* GR* Figures marked with an asterisk refer to 2015

12

WEC Economic Report 2017

THE DIRECT RECRUITMENT MARKET
Top 15 Countries ranked by sales revenue in Direct Recruitment (2016, in bn€)

€ 18.9 bn

1 USA€ 4.5 bn

2 UK

€ 4.0 bn

3 Australia *4 Germany€ 3.3 bn
€ 3.0 bn

5 Canada *Global direct recruitment
market€37,8 billion€ 2.7 bn

6 Japan7

China **

8

France9

Ireland*10

Netherlands€ 0.6 bn

11

Switzerland€ 0.5 bn

12

New Zealand*

13

Brazil14

South Africa**

15

Belgium € 0.2 bn€ 2.4 bn
€ 1.0 bn
€ 0.6 bn

€ 0.4 bn

€ 0.3 bn
€ 0.3 bn

* Figures marked with an asterisk refer to 2015** Figures marked with two asterisks refer to data provided by Staffing Industry Analysts

The global direct recruitment market in 2016 was worth anestimated €37,8 billion. The USA remains by far the largest
market in direct recruitment with the United Kingdom thelargest and oldest market in Europe (in sales).
The contribution per country breakdown saw thefollowing top 15

WEC Economic Report 201713

THE RPO MARKET

RPO market growth (2016 in bn€)+13%

2016 Revenue

3.7

2015 Revenue

The global RPO market in 2016 was worth an estimated€3,4 billion. The market grew by 13% globally, with aconsistent increase in all regions. North America is thelargest market accounting for 44%, followed by Europe(30%) and APAC (23%). South America experienced
tremendous growth, although it accounts for a mere 3%of the global market.

3.3

+13%
1.6

+11%

1.4
1.0

+14%

1.1
0.7

0.8

0.1

+34%
0.12

GlobalNorth America

EuropeAPAC

South America
Source: Staffing Industry Analysts

14

WEC Economic Report 2017

THE CAREER MANAGEMENT MARKET
Business drivers for providing outplacement€ 1 bn33%€ 1.1 bn37%

€ 0.1 bn3%

Global sales revenue(2016)€ 2.7 billion€ 0.5 bn
18%

The global Career Management market reached €2,7 billion in 2016, which
represents a small downturn compared to the previous year. The decline,
to some extent, is due to the recovery of the economy in markets where
outplacement, the process of accelerating career transition for displaced
employees is the most established. The regions where Career Management is
the most well established are North America and Europe, followed by the Asia
Pacific region.
Source: estimation made by the World Employment Confederation
WEC Economic Report 201715

THE MSP MARKET
Top 10 countries ranked by sales revenue in MSP (2016, in bn€)
€ 49 bn

The global MSP
market in 2016

€ 97 billion
The global MSP market in 2016 was worth an estimated97 € billion. The United States leads the field unrivalled,accounting for more than half of the market alone,followed by the UK (14%) and Australia (4,2%). The top
10 countries listed below account for more than 80% of
the global MSP market.

€ 13.5 bn€ 4 bn€ 2.1 bn

€ 1.8 bn
€ 2.1 bn

USA

UK

Australia

Germany

Canada€ 1.2 bn
€ 1.6 bn

India

Netherlands Switzerland€ 1 bn€ 1.1 bn

Belgium

FranceSource: Staffing Industry Analysts

16

WEC Economic Report 2017

Regional focus
NORTH AMERICA
Number ofplacements

Number of private
employment agencies

Internal staff

Sales revenue

15,100,000

20,385406,990

Agency Work

Agency Work€ 129 bn
€ 58.1 bn*
MSP€ 17.8 bn
Direct Recruitment
The United States dominates the Northern American
region accounting for 93% of the total revenue generated
by the employment industry. Canada accounts for 6% of
the Northern American market, showing a return to growthfollowing a slight downturn in 2015. Mexico accounts for
1% of the total market and shows a 6,6% year-over-year
growth in agency work compared to the previous year.

€ 1.5 bn*RPO

€ 1 bnCareer management*Source: Staffing Industry Analysts
WEC Economic Report 201717

SOUTH AMERICA
Number ofplacements

Number of private
employment agencies

Internal staff

Sales revenue

1,291,000

10,272249,564

Agency Work

Agency WorkHR specialists€ 5.2 bn
€ 0.2 bn*
MSP

603,000
Direct Recruitment

Brazil remains the strongest market in South America,
accounting for about 20% of the total revenue generated by
the employment industry despite a contracting market in 2015
due to the economic crisis with no recovey in 2016. Recent
legal changes (Law on Outsourcing, Extension of the Law on
Temporary Work and Labor Reform) have already positively
impacted the market, with a growth rate of 5% during the
4th quarter of 2017, according to FENASERHTT, the Brazilian
federation member of the World Employment Confederation.
Brazil has the highest agency work penetration rate in the region,
followed by Colombia, Chile and Argentina, all below 1% partly
due to the large amount of informal labour in the region.

€ 0.1 bn
Direct Recruitment€ 0.1 bn
Career Management€ 0.1 bn*
RPO

*Source: Staffing Industry Analysts

18

WEC Economic Report 2017

EUROPE
Number ofplacements

Number of private
employment agencies

Internal staff

Sales revenue

9,441,000

75,800429,300

Agency Work

Agency Work€ 139 bn
€ 30.3 bn*
MSP€ 11.3 bn
Direct Recruitment

1,482,000
Direct Recruitment

The UK leads the European employment market and was
responsible for close to 30% of the revenue generated
by the private employment industry in 2016 with a total
revenue of €36 billion (for all HR services combined). The
German market is the continent’s second largest, followed
by France and the Netherlands. Half of the world’s best
performing markets in agency work and 11 out of the 15
best performing markets in direct recruitment are locatedin Europe.

€ 1 bn*RPO€ 0.9 bn
Career management*Source: Staffing Industry Analysts

WEC Economic Report 2017

19

APAC
Number ofplacements

Number of private
employment agencies

Internal staff

Sales revenue

13,595,325

32,966

769,750

Agency Work

Agency Work
Japan, Australia and China are ranked among the 10 best performing
markets in both agency work and direct recruitment.

1,717,554
Direct Recruitment

Japan, the second largest market in agency work, shows a solid
year-over-year growth of 8% and ranks sixth amongst the best
performing markets in Direct Recruitment.
Australia stands out in the Asia Pacific region as a very mature andcompetitive market. It holds third place in our MSP and Direct
Recruitment rankings and owns the second highest penetration rate
in Agency Work (3,6%).
China has moved into third place in the ranking on agency workin 2016, assisting 8 million agency workers into work. Finally,
India represents an emerging market in the HR solutions industry,
especialy in MSP where it ranks sixth in the world.

€ 96.1 bn€ 9.9 bn
Direct Recruitment€ 8.3 bn*
MSP

€ 0.7 bn*
RPO

€ 0.5 bn
Career Management*Source: Staffing Industry Analysts

20

WEC Economic Report 2017

ENABLING
WORK

1- Enabling WorkIn 2016, 56 million people gained access to work thanks to a private employment agency, including
41 million agency workers. Agency work continues to expand in most advanced economies,
reaching a global sales revenue of €350 billion worldwide, representing roughly 70% of the global
employment market revenue. In Brazil, temporary work accounted for 23% of jobs created in 2016.
That number rises to 40% in France, clearly demonstrating its impact on economic growth and net
job creation. Agency work is positively regarded as it gives workers the opportunity to demonstrate
their ability and improves employment prospects and earnings in the short term. RPO also benefits
from a positive image for both workers and organisations: companies that outsource recruitment
report that their employees are more likely to rate themselves as highly engaged with their work,
impacting profitability and growth.
Finally, the data gathered by the World Employment Confederation indicates permanent staff placements
via direct recruitment rose in 2016, supported by a strong underlying demand for staff in 2016.

56 million people
access to work thanks to a
private employment agency€ 491 billion
global sales
revenue worldwide

Agency work
representing roughly 70%of the global employment
market size

WEC Economic Report 201721

PROVIDEQUALITY AND
MEANINGFUL
WORK
Job satisfaction is an affective
state where people like or dislike
their job and is one of the mostresearched subject mattersin business psychology. Job
satisfaction can be linked to many
variables including performance,
absenteeism and turnover.
Therefore it is crucial to cultivate
job satisfaction in any work
arrangement, including agency
work.
Recent studies from Norway,
Sweden, Germany and
Denmark have shown that agency
workers have high levels of job
satisfaction.

Satisfaction levels among agency workers (Scandinavia and Germany)

Overall, how satisfied are you with the content of your job as an agency worker?
Satisfied
Very satisfied

45%

33%

Norway22

WEC Economic Report 2017

42%

59%
43%

39%

36%

36%

SwedenDenmark

Germany

Source: National Federations of the World Employment Confederation
Germany: Source: DEKRA Arbeit Group (2017), survey on temporary agency workers.

ENABLING
WORK

Agency workers satisfaction

Would you recommend being an agency worker to your friends and acquaintances?
Yes
Don't know
No

68%

62%

63%
85%

18%

77%

87%

18%

20%

14%

17%

15%

SwedenNorwayGermany16%
7%Denmark

13%
FinlandPROVIDEQUALITY AND
MEANINGFUL
WORKAgency workers rate temporary
employment as positive or highly
positive and would recommend
it to their relatives especially inmarkets with a longer practice ofagency work. The positive aspectsof agency work are beyond
debate: it has enabled many
previously unemployed individuals
to enter the labour market
and temporary agency work is
consistently rated as preferable toremaining unemployed. This chartshows agency work is particularly
well viewed in Germany and
Finland.

20%
North America

Source (Scandinavia): National Federations of the World Employment Confederation - (North America): Staffing Industry Analysts (2017),
Temporary Worker Survey 2017 & Cumulative Index to 2012-2016 Surveys. Staffing Industry Analysts - (Germany): DEKRA Arbeit Group(2017), Survey on temporary agency workers

WEC Economic Report 201723

PROVIDEQUALITY AND
MEANINGFUL
WORKAgency work is an integral partof the national economies
represented by the federation
members of the World
Employment Confederation andan essantial factor in sustainability
and growth. On the whole, almost
all countries surveyed offer a wide
selection of assignments goingfurther than just answering shortterm human resources needs as
it also provides an opportunity tosource external expertise.

Length of assignments worldwide

Short-term [< 1 month]Medium-term [1 – 3 months]
Long-term [>3 months]

18%
42%

35%

29%

42%

18%

29%

67%

24%

36%
97%

19%

16%

10%

21%

24%

10%

25%

5%

29%

10%

20%

20%

89%

100%

17.5%
40%
45.5%

51%

57%

60%

61%
61%

46%
22%

65%
66%

70%

40.5%
25%

24

WEC Economic Report 2017

2%
1%

9%
2%

11%

LU

FR

SP

12.5%

JP

BR

IT

GR

BE USA UK MX RO

AR GER ES

CNENABLINGWORKPROVIDEQUALITY AND
MEANINGFULWORK% of employees rating themselves as highly engaged in their work

Employees in companies with
outplacement solutions
Other

Building a highly
engaged workforce
Among other benefits, having adefined process for transitioning
employees elsewhere canhelp with current employee
engagement, performance, andretention.

84%

75%

More specifically, employees incompanies with outplacement
solutions in place, are 12% more
likely than all others (84% vs. 75%)
to rate themselves as highly
engaged with their work.

Source: Aberdeen Group (2016), Support departing employees and your brand with outplacement, Aberdeen GroupWEC Economic Report 201725

PROVIDE QUALITY
AND MEANINGFULWORKBuilding a highly engaged
workforce

RPO usage has a big impact on employee satisfaction

Companies using RPO
All others

In general RPO implementation can
reduce the time-to-hire process
but it also enables HR to focus onother concerns, while the business
continues to thrive.
Companies that outsource
recruitment report that theiremployees are 8% more likely to ratethemselves as highly engaged with
their work, as compared to all others(69% vs 64%). With RPO providers
often employing excellent recruiters
and using cutting-edge technologies,
candidates are more likely to findtheir overall experiences to their
liking, even if they are not hired.
RPO users find that candidates whocompleted the hiring process andweren’t hired are 16% more likely torate their experience positively than in
non users company (63% vs 73%).

64%
44%

69%

63%
73%

46%

New employees who
received ratings exceeding
performance expectations

Employees who rated
themselves as highly
engagedCandidates who completed
the hiring process but were not
hired, still rated their experience
positively

Source: Aberdeen Group (2016), Optimazing Recruitment Process Outsourcing today, Aberdeen Group26

WEC Economic Report 2017

ENABLINGWORKPROVIDE A
STEPPING STONE

Temp-to-Perm convertion rates

20%

12%

25%

Australia*

Brazil

Norway

16%

50%

31%

The Netherlands

Switzerland

Spain

35%

17%

28%

USA

Italy**

Germany***

The employment industry
represents an important channel
not only to access the labour
market, but also to upgrade
people’s employability, allowing
them to improve their career.
Agency Work represents animportant stepping stone tosecure other employment
contracts, such as fixed-term andpermanent. There is evidence
from many countries globally,that agency work, rather thanunemployment, consistently
increases the workers’ chancesof being offered a permanentcontract.

WEC Economic Report 201727

PROVIDE A
STEPPING STONE
The stepping stone effectof agency work

Percentage of agency workers who received and accepted a permanent job in the USA

Permanent jobs offered
Permanent jobs accepted

In the USA, one-third (34%) of temporary andcontract employees across all sectors were
offered permanent positions by a client firm
where they had worked on assignment. Of
those, two-thirds (66%) accepted the offer.
Workers in the healthcare sector, are more
likely to receive a permanent job offer (45%)
but less likely to accept it (38%). Flexibility inthe healthcare sector is a greater driver andemployees are more likely to turn down apermanent offer.
Office–clerical and administrative staffing
employees are most likely to accept anoffer - three out of four (76%) employees
working in this sector who received apermanent job offer accepted it.
This data underpins the effectivenessof staffing as a bridge to permanent
employment. It also shows that while themajority of the time job offers are accepted,
there are many cases where a staffing
employee will turn down an offer. This isparticularly important in the healthcare sector.

76%
38%
34%

68%

66%

30%

32%

35%

67%

37%
64%

45%

Overall

Healthcare

Industrial

Office-clericaladministrative

ProfessionalManagerial

Technical, IT,
ScientificSource: American Staffing Association (2017), ASA annual economy analysis. Staffing Success special issue

28

WEC Economic Report 2017

ENABLINGWORKPROVIDE A
STEPPING STONE

Has staffing employment helped you secure a permanent position? (USA)

Somewhat agree

Somewhat disagree

The stepping stoneeffect of agency work

27%

16%
Strongly agree

Strongly disagree

26%

31%

Asked why they chose agency
work, professionals in Norway
and in the USA offered four main
reasons: it increases the chancesof finding permanent employment,
it brings in supplemental income,it provides the opportunity todevelop professional skills and it
serves as a good gateway to jumpstarting one’s career.

Source: American Staffing Association, Harris Poll (2014) Staffing Market Survey, American Staffing Association
WEC Economic Report 201729

PROVIDE A
STEPPING STONE

I believe working with the employment agency sector is a gateway to jobs with the clientcompany or elsewhere (Norway)

The stepping stoneeffect of agency work

Agree

Slightly disagree

37%

16%
Strongly agree

DisagreeNot applicableDon’t know

32%

6%

5%

5%

Source: IPSOS(2015), Survey in the employment agency sector , NHO Service

30

WEC Economic Report 2017

ENABLINGWORKPROVIDE A
STEPPING STONE

What has been your primary reason to work as a temporary employee? (USA)Other
To supplement income
while NOT looking for aregular/permanent position
Learn new skills / gain
work experience

11%

10%

The stepping stoneeffect of agency work9%

As a method of finding a regular/
permanent job or because I
thought it might lead to a regular/
permanent position

58%

To supplement income
while looking for aregular/permanent
position

12%

Source: Staffing Industry Analysts (2016), Temporary Worker Survey: Why do temporary workers temp, and what is their preferred work
status? Staffing Industry Analysts

WEC Economic Report 201731

PROVIDE A
STEPPING STONE
The stepping stoneeffect of agency work

Why are you an agency worker? (Norway)

Don’t know

5%
12%

Other
You would have lost your job seeker’s
allowance if you had not taken this job
You get higher wages or other benefits
that you would not get otherwise
You don’t want a full-time job
You want extended time off at times
You want the extra income
You can choose your own
working hours and workplace
You want to see different workplaces
and gain all-round work experience
Being an agency worker is easierthan getting a different kind of job
The employment agency sector isa good gateway to working life

2%
5%
7%
11%
14%
16%
23%
37%
40%
Source: IPSOS(2015), Survey in the employment agency sector, NHO Service

32

WEC Economic Report 2017

2- Enabling Adaptation

5 million
companies

The employment industry
covers all sectors
especiallygained access to a diverse
workforceservices (43%)
44%

ENABLING
ADAPTATION

In 2016, the employment industry supported over 5 million companies to grow in a volatile businessworld, bringing them access to a diverse workforce, covering all sectors in particular services (43%) andmanufacturing (29%). The report shows that private employment agencies engage with job seekers
who possess a wide range of skills and abilities. Globally, 48% of all workers possess medium-levelskills, a proportion that has remained steady compared to the previous year. As the content of the work
undertaken by agency workers evolves, training has become an absolute necessity for both companies
and employees. Our report finds that 32% of all agency workers gained access to training in 2016. The
employment industry brings innovative solutions to training as exemplified by bipartite training funds,
which offered access to training to 400 000 agency workers in 2016.

32%
of all agency workers
gained access totraining

WEC Economic Report 2017

33

34

WEC Economic Report 2017

2%
22%

SP

1%

28%

30%

NL NO RO

18%

33%

32%
10%

24%

MX

1%

7%

38%

1%

40%

11%

LU

3%

JA

22%

2%

IT

2%

1%

22%

31%

1%

FR GER GR

10%

50%

27%

15%
43%

15%

8%

57%
39%

2%

39%

3% 14%

1% 7%

15%
24%

39%
3%
46%
10%

ES

40%

CO

1%

CL

43%
11%

BR

1%

6% 8%

25%
5%

30%
1%

BE

5%

70%

31%

5%

5%

10%

68%

84%

36%

26%

17%

55%

47%

6%
14%

12%
8%

30%

16%

18%

5%

2% 9%
53%

50%

AR

57%

Agriculture

34%

Construction

1%

Public Administration

11% 1%

Manufacturing

4%

Services

8%This chart shows the distributionof the workforce across economic
sectors around the world. In
2016, 43% of the workforce
was employed in services, 30%
in manufacturing and 7% was
active within the field of public
administration. Although the shareof the labour force employed inagriculture still accounts for asignificant part of employment
in certain countries, the global
number of people employed inagriculture accounts for a mere 3%of the employment market.

Other

41%

Most agency workers
are employed in services
and manufacturing

Agency Work sectoral distribution

1%

FACILITATEWORK
TRANSITIONSAND SOCIAL
MOBILITYSE

UKAgency Work sectoral distribution - World average

Agriculture

43%

Services

30%

9%

7%

8%

Manufacturing

PublicAdministration

ENABLING
ADAPTATION

3%FACILITATEWORK
TRANSITIONSAND SOCIAL
MOBILITY
Construction

Other

WEC Economic Report 2017

35

36

WEC Economic Report 2017

GER

2%
30%

22%
43%

67%

35%

50%

60%

JA

MX

NO

RO

SP

SE

31%

20%

20%
LH

35%

48%

76%
42%

GR

15%

8%

25%
ES

17%

20%

35%

76%
60%
54%

BR

23%

15%
9%

32%

9%

9%

55%
45%
15%
AR

High 20%

37%

40%

20%

14%

Medium 48%

60%

Two thirds of agency work is either
medium or high skilled work. As
can be seen on this graph, there
are variations among the countries
surveyed, however, the findings
show overall, agency work plays
an important role in helping low,
medium and high-skilled workers
in gaining valuable experience inthe labour market.

Low 32%26%

FACILITATEWORK
TRANSITIONSAND SOCIAL
MOBILITY

Skills required by job executed

CHADAPT WORKFORCETO PRODUCTION
NEEDS

Quarterly evolution (year-over-year) of number of hours worked by agency workers in Europe
versus quarterly evolution (year-over-year) of GDP volume EU28
Y-o-y Evolution of GDP volume - EU28
30%

Agency work is a strong
economic indicator

20%

Analysis shows that agency work is astrong economic indicator of whenthe economy is recovering from a
recession. This suggests that a sustained
upturn in agency work signals the endof a recession as observed from thesecond half of 2009. Agency work isalso a moderate coincident indicatorof when the economy is in a highgrowth period. Agency work is poorly
related to GDP during a recession
and a weak (though still statisticallysignificant), indicator during periodsof stable economic growth. In 2016,the hours worked by agency workers
in Europe grew by 4,4% compared tothe previous year, while the GDP of theEuropean Union (EU-28) was estimatedto increase by 1,9% compared to theprevious year, showing agency work is
benefiting from GDP growth across thecontinent.

2%
1%
10%

0%
-1%

0%
-2%
-10%

-3%
-4%

-20%
-5%
-30%

-6%

2008Q1
2008Q2
2008Q3
2008Q4
2009Q1
2009Q2
2009Q3
2009Q4
2010Q1
2010Q2
2010Q3
2010Q4
2011Q1
2011Q2
2011Q3
2011Q4
2012Q1
2012Q2
2012Q3
2012Q4
2013Q1
2013Q2
2013Q3
2013Q4
2014Q1
2014Q2
2014Q3
2014Q4
2015Q1
2015Q2
2015Q3
2015Q4
2016Q1
2016Q2
2016Q3
2016Q4
2017Q1
2017Q2
2017Q3Y-o-y Evolution of AW Hours Worked - Europe

WEC Economic Report 201737

ENABLING
ADAPTATION

3%

IMPROVEEMPLOYABILITYBY UPSKILLING

Share of trained agency workers

Training: an essential
factor in careerdevelopment for an
adaptive workforce
Training has become a powerfulmotivator for accepting work
assignments. It benefits employers
and employees alike: employers
develop the skills base andcompetences necessary forcommercial success, while
employees value the investment intheir careers and see it as a ‘value
add’ of temporary employment.
32% of all respondants received
training. A higher proportion of
temporary employees in the USA
and Mexico benefited from local
training programmes in 2016.

93%

59%
42%
35%

Mexico38

WEC Economic Report 2017

USA

Italy

FranceSource: National Federations of the World Employment Confederation. The survey takes into consideration only the members surveyed
by the national federations of the World Employment Confederation.

The contribution of private and public partnerships within Active Labour Market Policies
Ireland

Australia

Italy

The Netherlands

The United Kingdom
launched the “Work
Programme” in June 2011
aimed to get long-term
unemployed people backto work.

Ireland followed theexample of United Kingdom
in 2015 launching the
programme “Jobpath”, anapproach to employment
activation which caters
mainly for people who are
long-term unemployed (over12 months) to assist them tosecure a job.

Over the past several years,
Australia has cut back on
government involvement in
the delivery of employment
services by making more useof the private sector, including
private employment agencies.
In 2015, the Australian
government launched its
latest Active Labour Market
Policies programme called“Jobactive”.
Private employment agencies
are selected through publictender, whilst their payment isconditioned to a success fee:the higher the job’s duration,
the higher the fee (there arethree tranches: 4, 12 and 26
weeks). Agencies must meeta certain success threshold toremain in the programme.

Although the Italian labour
market has not traditionallyimplemented private andpublic partnerships, theLombardia region represents
a virtuous exception. Indeed,
the ALMP “Dote Lavoro”
promoted by the region
represents a succesfull
example of private andpublic partnership. The
providers of the programme
are both public and private
operators (the latter need alicense to operate). The Dotecomprised a sum, calculatedon the difficulty to employ
the individual, that can beclaimed by the operators after
a successful employmentoutcome. “Dote Lavoro”
has been the model usedin implementing the Italianscheme of the EU “Youth
Guarantee” programme.

The Netherlands have along-standing history andcultural policy in private
and public cooperation.
The Servicepunt Flex
(SPF), an equally financed
joint private and publicbody, monitors, promotes
and advises on private
and public cooperation in
the Netherlands. Due tothe fact that employment
services’ competence isdelegated to municipalities,
there is no national schemeon private and public
employment services.
Nevertheless, partnerships
are in place and their value
is fully recognized. Private
employment agencies
have access to jobseekers
through speed job-dating,whilst the 70% of public
employment services’ offers
are composed of agency
work.

Results:
So far, 2 million
people haveparticipated in theWork Programme
The Programme
supported 580.000
individuals inaccessing work for
assignments ranging
from 3 to 6 months
People who founda job through theProgramme remain
employed: on
average, those who
spent between 3-6
months in workwithin a year, spent
49 weeks in workwithin the twoproceeding years

Source: JobPath Performance
Data 2017

Results:
17.584 long term
unemployed havebeen engaged withthe services
26% (19% full time,
4% part-time, 3%
self-employed) ofparticipants founda job
34% of participants
moved to an
employment
relationship in Q3
2015, 22% in Q4 2015
and 8% in Q1 2016, allhigher rates than for
non-participants

Source: Work Programme National Statistics March 2017

Results:
714.460 job seekers
engaged, 134.600
of whom under 25
years old
380,000 job
placements
48% of theparticipants were
employed threemonths later (26%part-time, 22% fulltime)
Sources: Employment Services
Outcomes Report, 2016, LabourMarket Information Portal, data
September 2017 / OECD slides,
OECD, How Australia does it, 2012

Results of thefirst round (2015)82.217 « doti »assigned
81% of those founda job
19.414 young
people found a
job through theprogramme

Source: Dote Lavoro

Results:
35% ofunemployment
beneficiaries finda job throughprivate employment
agencies

Private and public partnerships
play a key role within Active LabourMarket Policies (ALMP). Many
States have opened their labour
market policies to the employment
industry, implementing successfulprogrammes to put people backto work.
Anglo-saxon countries are
historically the first to implement
private and public partnerships,
although the debate around ALMP
and private and public partnerships
in general, has driven many
countries to acknowledge theimportance of private employment
agencies in such schemes.

74% remain in
employment
Source: SPF presentation

WEC Economic Report 201739

ENABLING
ADAPTATIONUK

FACILITATEWORK
TRANSITIONSAND SOCIAL
MOBILITYIMPROVEEMPLOYABILITYBY UPSKILLING

Budget spent on training for agency workers via bipartite training funds

The world of work is changing.
Employees are constantly being
assessed on their knowledge andskills.
Surveys show there is a strong
correlation between learning andsustained employment. Staff who
undertake learning activities gain
the ability to adapt to the changing
requirements of an organisationand gain a competitive edge inthe job market more easily. The
employment industry establishedsectoral training initiatives, adapted
to the needs of the companies andthe realities of the sectoral labour
market. In 2016, 400,000 agency
workers were trained via bipartite
funds in 6 European countries. The
total funding invested in training
amounted to € 367 mn.

€ 367.2 mn

400,000

Total budget

Total agency workers
trainedBelgium

FranceItaly

BudgetBudgetBudget€ 1.5 mn

€ 160 mn

€ 178mn

Agency workers trained

Agency workers trained

Agency workers trained

7,110

40,000231,000

Luxembourg

The Netherlands

Switzerland

BudgetBudgetBudget€ 1.3 mn

€ 11.2 mn€ 15.2 mn

Agency workers trained

Agency workers trained

Agency workers trained

2,943

107,820

10,740Source: National Federations of the World Employment Confederation

40

WEC Economic Report 2017

3- Enabling Security
The data gathered by the World Employment Confederation shows how private employment agencies secureaccess to talent by adding more jobs than most industries. In the US for instance, staffing agencies hired a totalof 14.5 million temporary employees in 2016. Flexibility, speed, and access to talent are among the top benefits
cited by organisations making use of agency work. 1 in 3 companies use private employment agencies to receive
a better quality employee, investing 22% of their HR budget on staffing firms. But the services offered by theemployment industry goes beyond flexibility and provides broader qualitative outcomes. For instance, evidenceshows organisations that invest in an RPO provider are able to reduce hiring costs on a year-over-year basis andimprove time-to-hire. From the perspective of workers who face more and more transitions in the labour market,
the innovative solutions created by the employment industry are crucial for them to maintain social security andemployability in the future of work.

ENABLING
SECURITYIn the US, 14.5 million

temporary employees
were hired by staffing
agencies in 2016.

Flexibility, speed, andaccess to talent
are among the top benefits citedby organisations making use ofagency work.

1 out of 3 companies

use private employment agencies todeliver a quality hiring, investing

22% of their HR budget
on staffing firms.

WEC Economic Report 2017

41

42

WEC Economic Report 2017

How likely are you to recommend your organisation’s primary staffing
agency/supplier? (10 = very likely)

10%

16%

23%

18%

14%

13%

How likely are you to recommend your organisation’s primary MSP? (10 = very likely)
1%
1%

In these graphics, Staffing Industry
Analysts asked large companies(with 1,000 or more employees)
around the globe how likely
they would be to recommend
their current supplier for various
workforce solutions as a means
to gauge their satisfaction level.
Respondents selected a value
ranging from zero to ten, with zero
indicating not likely to recommend
and ten meaning very likely torecommend. Regarding primarystaffing agency/supplier, theaverage score was 7.2. Responses
generally fell within the range
from 5 to 10, with only 6% ofrespondents rating a score below
5. Regarding MSP, the averagescore was 7.4. More than one thirdof respondents (39%) rated either a9 or 10. Regarding RPO providers,the average score was 6.2. While
11% of respondents gave a zero,the vast majority (85%) gave ascore in the range of 5 to 10.

Satisfaction rates predominantly positive

2%
1%
2%
1%

SECURE ACCESSTO TALENT

5%

13%

10%

13%

19%

16%

23%

How likely are you to recommend your organisation’s primary recruitment process
outsourcing (RPO) provider? (10 = very likely)
11% 4% 1% 10%

16%

23%

18%

14%

13%

0 1 23 4 5

6

7

8

9

10

Source: Staffing Industry Analysts (2017), 2017 Workforce Solutions Buyers Survey Satisfaction with suppliers; comments on value of VMS
and MSP.

SECURE ACCESSTO TALENT

Reasons for hiring agency workers

Why use a recruitment agency? (Norway)
To handle seasonal or
cyclical variations
When employees
are on sick leave

As a supplement tofinding your own workers

To find personnel
with the rightcompetences

Because you were unable to findqualified people on your own
To find personnel for
project-based work59%

To find personnel for activities
outside your comapny’s corebusiness

Because it allows you
to evaluate candidates

59%

50%

Short-term
projects

50%
27%

23%

23%

18%

18%

An opportunity to gauge the 'fit' before
hiring on a permanent basis
Access morecandidates

47%

41%

Ability to fillpositions quickly

Flexibility to easily change the sizeof your workforce based on the
duration of the project
Access to talentswith more
specialised skills

38%

32%

Source: EPSI Rating (2017), the use of staffing services in Norway. NHO Service
Source: American Staffing Association, CareerBuilder, Inavero (2014) Opportunities in Staffing.

26%

WEC Economic Report 201743

ENABLING
SECURITY

How companies benefit from working with staffing firms (USA)

There are many advantages tohiring agency workers. They offer
the opportunity to quickly hiresomeone with specialist skills, or tobolster a department in the shortterm. They can also bring new skill
sets, which may prove beneficial
to businesses. And given market
volatility, short-term contractors
provide the ideal opportunity toassess market shifts and futureneeds and opportunities. The
survey below was conductedby the NHO, the Norwegian
member of the World Employment
Confederation, and shows themain reasons why companies turnto agency work in that country.

SECURE ACCESSTO TALENTS
Companies partneringwith an RPO provider
improve their talentmanagement strategies
Companies that internalise therecruitment process lose thesubject-matter expertise of an RPO
partner. According to research
conducted by the Aberdeen group,
the organisations surveyed are
10,7% more likely than those thatengage an RPO partner (25% vs.
22.6%) to lack an understandingof what exactly is causing theirskills gaps. They are also 59% more
likely than companies using an
RPO partner (33.3% vs 17.7%) with
the inability to establish a talentpipeline for their open positions.

The advantages of using RPO

Companies with RPO
Other

33%
25%
22.5%

Companies with a lack of understanding as
to what exactly is causing their skill gaps

18%

Companies who are unable to establish
talent pipelines for their open positions

Source: Aberdeen Group (2017), Recruitment Process Outsourcing: a lifeline in the war for top talent.

44

WEC Economic Report 2017

INCREASE
BUSINESSCOMPETITIVE­NESS

Outplacement has an impact on business identity and growthYear-over-year improvement
Companies with
outplacement
solutions in place

While there are a variety of methods
available in keeping the workforce
satisfied, an often overlooked strategy
is properly communicating thebusiness case for a layoff and helping
impacted employees find newjobs faster. This concept is called
outplacement.

Other

4%

11.3%

3.4%

Voluntary employee
turnover

Revenue per full-time
equivalent workers

Only 25% ofcompanies havean offboarding
process.
Best-in-class companies are
2.5 times more likely to use
outplacement (55% vs 22%)

Findings show companies with
outplacement solutions improved
their voluntary employee turnover by
18% year-over-year compared to allothers and their revenue per full-time
equivalent workers by 11%.

WEC Economic Report 201745

ENABLING
SECURITY

12.5%

Research conducted by the AberdeenGroup explores the importanceof both outplacement and proper
communication during offboarding,and how they can have an impact on
business identity and growth.

INCREASE
BUSINESSCOMPETITIVENESS
RPO: driving down
the cost per hire andimproving talentacquisition
RPO can help HR with various
business and employee-centric key
performance indicators, from timeto-hire to employee engagement.
Organisations that invest in an RPO
provider are able to reduce hiringcosts on a year-over-year basis by38%, compared with organisations
that don’t outsource recruiting(3,3% vs. 2,4%) and they are able toimprove time-to-hire as well.

RPO usage has a big impact on HR KPIs

Year-over-year improvement
Companies with RPO
Other

3,3%
2,4%
1,8%

-0,4%
Cost per hire

Time-to-hireSource: Aberdeen Group (2016), Optimazing Recruitment Process Outsourcing, Aberdeen Group.

46

WEC Economic Report 2017

INCREASE
BUSINESSCOMPETITIVENESS

Primary reasons for implementing RPO

Improving recruitment
efficiency
Making hiring
more scalable

Reducing costs

Improving qualityof hires
For help withseasonal needs

Improving workforce
analytics

Improving
workforce planning

59%

59%

50%

Short-term
project
Improving legal
compliance

50%
27%

23%

23%

18%

18%
9%

Source: Staffing Industry Analyst (2017), 2017 Workforce Solutions Buyers Survey Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO); best source ofhires.

WEC Economic Report 201747

ENABLING
SECURITY

Staffing Industry Analysts asked
companies about their main
reason(s) for implementing theirprimary RPO. Respondents were
presented with the 10 options
represented in this graph andcould choose as many options as
they wished. The most selected
reasons were improving recruitment
efficiency (59%), making hiring
more scalable (59%), reducing costs(50%) and accommodating spikes indemand (50%).

Accommodating
spikes in demand

DELIVERPORTABLE RIGHTS
Social Innovation: Howsocial partners in theemployment industry
create portable social
protection, learnability
and employability
Workers face more transitions in
the labour market that challenge
the adequacy of traditional systemsof social security and skill training.
Social partners in the employment
industry together, developed avariety of innovative solutions tocreate security. These bi-partite
initiatives involve unemployment
benefits and pensions, healthinsurance, access to mortgages,
maternity leave, training, etc. Thissnapshot provides an overview
of the portable rights solutions
implemented by the employment
industry in 7 European countries
in order to maintain social security
and employability in the future of
work.
48

WEC Economic Report 2017

Social benefits

Training

AT

ff Unemployment benefits

ff General or specialised
trainingBE

ff Support in applying for aloan
ff End-of-year bonus

ff Sectoral or specialised
training

FR

ff Unemployment benefits
ff Loans and housing advice
ff Income integrationIT

ff Financial incentives forstudents
ff Support in applying for aloan
ff Unemployment benefits

ff Training Vouchers
ff Working-training contracts

ff Training courses provided by
the fund: on-the-job training
and general training

LU

ff Training vouchers
ff Allowance for loss of income

NL

ff Training vouchersCH

ff Training vouchers
ff Allowance for loss of income

Healthcare Schemes (supplementary)

Inclusion & coachingPension (third pillar)

ff Supplementary allowance in theevent of sickness or accidents at
work
ff Supplementary healthcare
ff Maternity benefits
ff Accidents at work allowances
ff Career guidance and training

ff Supplementary pension

ENABLING
SECURITY

ff Supplementary maternity andillness benefits
ff Accidents at work allowances

ff Supplementary
pensionff Supplementary health insurance
ff Maternity benefits
ff Accidents at work allowances
WEC Economic Report 2017

49

DELIVERPORTABLE RIGHTS
These examples provide empiricalevidence of the use of social
dialogue in the agency-worksector in several European
countries. These outcomes show
how in the agency sector a myriadof rights are created in the fieldof skills development, pension,
healthcare, disability, housing,childcare, and other forms ofsocial benefits. The diversity ofthese instruments is vast andthe portability of social security
benefits is mainly confined inthose countries where a sectoralsocial dialogue is in place anddedicated agency-work collective
agreements exist.

Training benefits
BE

FR

2,213

2,620

individual training leave

professional development
contracts put in place:
86% led to a job

granted:

1,592

77% led to a job

training courses delivered

1,513

416

7,112

skills assessment
leave granted

participants in 201687%
remain in employment
afterwardIToccupational integration
contracts implemented: 81%
led to a job

132

6,518

validation of priorprofessional experience(VPE) programs
implemented

professionalisation periods
granted to maintain workers
employability through workstudy programmes:

5,238

87% success rate

30%

compentecy-based
training programmes
reaching 8,712
participants

found a job afterward

7,040

5,732

general training
programmes organised
reaching 87 936
participantsSocial benefits and supplementary healthcare
FR

IT€ 20 million
FASTT provided support in househunting to

9,900
agency workers

6,000

2,150 agency workers were

agency workers have rented ahouse thanks to FASTT warrants

granted a loan in order to buy
a vehicle, 962 of which weremicroloans

4,911
childcare solutions were provided
to agency workers

6,000
vehicles were rented at reduced cost

WEC Economic Report 2017

9,049
on-the-job training
programmes reaching
11,422 participants

professional training
contracts signed

Services provided to 83,000
agency workers by mobilising

50

9,254
professional training
programmes
implemented: among
119,158 training
participants,

1 million agency workers
have benefited from a
supplementary health insurance
fund36,900 beneficiaries ofsupplementary health insurance
schemes
57,600 agency workers
supported in getting a loan or
mortgage
2,400 beneficiaries ofchildcare support

4- Enabling Prosperity
Private employment agencies create decent jobs for all and more opportunities to participate to
the jobs market. Evidence provided by the members of the World Employment Confederationshows agency work acts as a stepping stone from unemployment to work in the long term: 12
months after starting an assignment via agency work, the share of unemployed persons droppedby 15% in Norway and by 23% in Mexico. Agency work is a particularly important means of labour
market insertion for resettled refugees in Germany, where 20% of refugees who found a job did
so via a private employment agency. Finally, private employment agencies ensure prosperityby playing an expending role for economies. In the US for instance, agency work and direct
recruitment sales revenue increased 1.8% to $150 billion in 2016.

NOMX

12 months after starting an

assignment via agency work, the shareof unemployed persons dropped by

15% in Norway and by
23% in Mexico.

In Germany, 20%of refugees

found a job via a private

revenue increased

1.8% to $150
billion in 2016

WEC Economic Report 201751

ENABLING
PROSPERITY

employment
agencyIn the US, agency work anddirect recruitment sales

REDUCEUNEMPLOYMENT
Shaping inclusive
workplaces throughtraining
The employment industry has
put in place a concrete set ofactionable training measures
to improve the employabilityof workers, help the long-term
unemployed return to work andinclude the most vulnerable
workers in the jobs market.
Bipartite training funds in Belgium,
France, Italy and the Netherlands
offer training that can help theunemployed gain the skills theyneed to get back to work.

52

WEC Economic Report 2017

These bipartite funds allocate funding to reintegrate unemployedvulnerable groups into the jobs market
BEIn Belgium, job
seekers who require
immediate training
before starting a
new assignment or
temporarily inactive
individuals willing
to reintegrate thejobs market via
agency work are
eligible to apply
to the Learn4Job
programme.
Candidates receive
targeted training toensure the provisionof relevant skills.

IT

In Italy, the“PAL Tempo
Indeterminato”
and “PAL tempo
determinato”
programmes aim
to increase theemployability of themost vulnerable
groups excluded
from the Italianlabour market: theyoung, the longterm unemployed
and migrants. Bothprogrammes reached3,000 participants in
2015.

FR

In France, the FAF.TT
provides an“operational strategy
for employment” thataims to reintegrate
job seekers into
the French labour
market, via a training
programme designed
to fit the needs oforganisations. 6,200
training sessions weredelivered in 2016.

NL

In the Netherlands, job
seekers who are under
28 years old and fall
below a certain levelof education canapply for a training
voucher worth 500€
and follow the trainingof their choice.

REDUCEUNEMPLOYMENTAgency work: the stepping stone to employment

Situation before working as an agency worker

49%
40%

39%

23%
12%

2%

Netherlands

Norway10%

0%5%Mexico

4%
16%

15%

12%

19%

2%

Romania

Switzerland*

5%
10%

25%

Inactive

16%

7%
USA*

7%

3%
30%

*G
 rześ A. (2014), Temporary work agencies andunemployment in Poland. Optimum. Studia
ekonomiczne, 5:71, 139-158** D
 EKRA Arbeit Group (2017), survey on
temporary agency workers

Situation 12 months afterworking as an agency worker
WEC Economic Report 201753

ENABLING
PROSPERITY

Unemployed23%

Agency work helps unemployedindividuals maintain their presencein the labour force in the longterm, whether inside or outside theemployment industry. This graphshows that 12 months after starting
an assignment via agency work,
the share of unemployed persons
dropped by 7% in Switzerland, 9% in
the US, 8%in the Netherlands, 15% in
Noway and 23% in Mexico. Further
research* in Poland demonstrates
there is a strong negative correlation
between unemployment andthe rise of private employment
agencies and 27% of job seekers inGermany declare turning to private
employment agencies to reintegrate
the labour market after a period of
unemployment**.

INCREASE INCLUSIVENESSAND DIVERSITY
Temporary agency employment can be a springboard
into the jobs market for the most vulnerable groups
like migrants and refugees who face challenges tolabour market access. According to research from theInternational Organisation for Migrations and the ILO*, therole of private employment services as a bridge between
the needs of companies and workers’ expectations is evenmore effective for migrant workers as the agency may
facilitate the coordination of paperwork and overcome
language barriers.
Also, agency work represents a valuable stepping stone
to permanent jobs, as agency workers gain working
experience and expand their working network. In
Denmark a research project tested the effectivenessof workers taking an agency work job during a phaseof unemployment. The stepping stone effect is proved
to be even larger for Non-Western migrants, as theirprobability to obtain a permanent job during agency work
assignments is 46% higher in comparison with their nativeequivalent. This positive trend is slightly reduced after
the agency work job ends (29% higher than the nativeequivalent) as shown in this graph.
Finally, according to information provided by the
BAP, the German member of the World Employment
Confederation, 20% of the refugees who found a job inGermany did so through a private employment agency.
54

WEC Economic Report 2017

The integration of the most excluded workers: migrants

Higher probability of obtaining a permanent job
for Non-Western immigrants (Denmark)

29%

46%

During TAW

Post TAW

Source: ILO (2017), Non-standard employment around the world, ILO

20%
of refugees who found a job inGermany did so through a

private employment
agencySource: Jahn and Rosholm (2014), Looking beyond the bridge: The effect of temporary agency
employment on labor market outcomes, European Economic Review, 65:C, pages 108-125

Global average
gender split

Male

58%

42%

Female

INCREASE
INCLUSIVENESSAND DIVERSITY

Agency Work age distrub

35%

31%
25%

32%

30%

39%

33%

35%
35%

24%

16%
17%

30%

11%
8%

34%

40%
19%

25%

20%

10%

9%
24%

30%

10%
20%

30%
35%

30%
17%

31%
41%
25%

38%

19%

18%
20%

16%

LU NL NO PL RO SP SE AR BR CL JP MX US Average

Experienced people are
significantly represented
in agency work
Among agency workers undertaking
assignments on a temporary basis
via private employment agencies,
evidence shows agency work is
not only the province of young
people seeking to gain experienceor trying out a potential workplace.
80% of agency workers in Japan areover 30 year of age, with the ratein the US exceeding 60%, in Spain(64%) and Italy (63%), reflecting theconstant need for skills in all areasof corporate activity. Further datashows woman made up 42% of thetotal interim workforce and Mencomprised of 58%. The highest
representation of men working
in any industry was construction
and manufacturing, both sectors
impacting the global average.

WEC Economic Report 201755

ENABLING
PROSPERITYAT BE ES FR GER GR IT

42%

5%
30%

47%

27%

48%

30%

17%

17%

11%
19%
19%
37%

17%

40%

39%

25%

20%

25%

23%

15%
32%
28%
25%

19%

31%
16%

25%

28%

24%

30%

24%

20%

37%

30%

31%
36%
21%
21%

<24

25-30

33%

15%

17%

22%

20%

31-45

>45

Global average: 17%

INCREASE WORKINCOME
Students in work andtheir contribution tolabour markets
This graph evaluates the size andcomposition of the student labour
force. A common trait of student
work is its very high degree of
flexibility compared to that ofnon-students, allowing them tocombine work and study. The
share of working students differs
greatly between countries, withstudents in Belgium, Finland andSpain contributing to higher rates
of student employment.

Share of Students within Agency Workers

36%

18%

23%

Belgium

Estonia

Finland

15%
France13%
Netherlands

15%

9%

GreeceMexico19%

12%

NorwayRomania

21%

14%

11%

Spain

Switzerland

USA

Source: Members of the World Employment Confederation

56

WEC Economic Report 2017

Annexes
GLOSSARY OF USED TERMS AND ACRONYMS
Agency work
Agency Work is a triangular employment
relationship, defined in ILO Convention 181 as:"Services consisting of employing workers with aview to making them available to a third party, who
may be a natural or legal person ("user enterprise")which assigns their tasks and supervises theexecution of these tasks“. It can be named as
Dispatched Labour in Asia, Labor Hire in Africa or
Temporary Staffing in the USA.
Career management
Main service segments are individual
outplacement services, executive outplacement
services, group outplacement services andother employment transition services. In thesesegments, outplacement services companies
provide a range of employment and career
services. These include resume writing, interview
skills, job search strategies, coaching and career
guidance. Employers generally pay all of the costs
associated with these services.
Daily average number of agency workers (FTE)
Total number of hours worked by all agency
workers in a country over a period of one year
divided by the average number of hours worked
over a period of one year by a worker with a fulltime job with an open-ended contract.

Direct Recruitment
Services for matching offers of and applications
for employment, without the private employment
agency becoming a party to the employment
relationships which may arise therefrom (Source:
ILO Convention 181), including executive search &selection.
Managed Services Provider (MSP)
MSP is a service whereby a company takes
on primary responsibility for managing anorganization’s contingent workforce program.
Typical responsibilities of an MSP include overall
program management, reporting and tracking,supplier selection and management, order
distribution and often consolidated billing. The
vast majority of MSPs also provide their clientswith a vendor management system (VMS) and may
have a physical presence on the client’s site. An
MSP may or may not be independent of a staffing
supplier.
Penetration rate
Daily average number of agency workers [infull-time equivalents] divided by the working
population [as defined by the ILO as follows:“The employed comprise all persons of working
age who during a specified brief period, suchas one week or one day, were in the following

categories: a) paid employment (whether atwork or with a job but not at work); or b) selfemployment (whether at work or with anenterprise but not at work).“
Private employment services / Employment
industry
Agency work is usually one of several other HR
services provided by recruitment and employment
agencies, along with direct recruitment, career
management, RPO & MSP. The broad range ofthese services are called private employment
services. The employment agency provides
a professional service to a user company bytaking over (a part of) the recruitment and HR
process. In this sense, private employment
services are comparable to other professional andbusiness services such as auditing & accounting,communications & marketing, facilities
management etc.
Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO)
A service by a third-party specialist provider,to assume the role of the client’s recruiting
department by owning and managing part or allof its recruitment process and related recruitment
supply chain partner relationships, provide thenecessary skills, activities, tools, technologies, andprocess methodologies.
WEC Economic Report 201757

MEMBERS OF THE WORLD EMPLOYMENTCONFEDERATION (NATIONAL FEDERATIONS)North America

North East Asia

EuropeCanada (CA)Mexico (MX)USA (USA)

China (CN)Japan (JP)South Korea (KR)

Latin America

APAC Southern

Argentina (AR)Brazil (BR)Chile (CL)Colombia (CO)Peru (PE)Australia (AU)India (IN)Indonesia (ID)
New Zealand (NZ)
Philippines (PH)Singapore (SG)Vietnam (VN)

Austria (AT)
Belgium (BE)
Bulgaria (BG)
Croatia (HR)Czech Republic (CZ)
Denmark (DK)
Estonia (ES)Finland (FI)France (FR)Germany (DE)Greece (GR)
Hungary (HU)
Ireland (IE)
Italy (IT)
Latvia (LV)
Lithuania (LT)
Luxembourg (LU)
Netherlands (NL)
Norway (NO)Poland (PL)Portugal (PT)
Romania (RO)Russia (RU)
Slovakia (SK)Slovenia (SI)Spain (SP)Sweden (SE)Switzerland (CH)
Turkey (TR)UK (UK)

AfricaMorocco (MA)South Africa (ZA)58

WEC Economic Report 2017

MEMBERS OF THE WORLDEMPLOYMENT CONFEDERATION(CORPORATE MEMBERS)

Disclaimer
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must take appropriate steps to verify this information before acting upon it.
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as ©World Employment Confederation – Economic Report 2017.
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