Aligra are delighted to announce that, following a full audit and inspection by the Gangmasters Labour and Abuse Authority, they have been awarded a GLAA Licence.
The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority works in partnership to protect vulnerable and exploited workers and the licensing scheme regulates businesses who provide workers to the fresh produce supply chain and horticulture industry, to make sure that employment standards required by law are met.
An employment agency, who provides workers to the Agriculture, Horticulture, Shellfish gathering and any associated processing and packaging sectors need a GLAA licence. Labour providers are assessed to check they meet the GLAA licensing standards which cover health and safety, accommodation, pay, transport and training. We check that they are fit to hold a licence and that tax, National Insurance and VAT regulations are met.
The GLA was established on 1 April 2005 by the Gangmasters (Licensing) Act 2004, which was passed following the 2004 Morecambe Bay cockling disaster. The primary purpose of the authority is to prevent the exploitation of workers in the fresh produce sector. Although it is estimated that there are approximately 19,000 employment agencies and businesses in the UK, currently less than 2% of this number are licensed with the GLA, giving an indication of the difficulties involved in obtaining the required standards to be awarded the licence.
The Swindon-based firm has previously specialised in Industrial, Logistics, Automotive and Professional & Executive recruitment to organisations throughout Wiltshire, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Hampshire and Nationwide.
MD Mark Neilson, who set up the company in 2007, said “the award of the new licence means we can now move into new sectors and continue its impressive expansion. As a business, we have ambitious expansion plans and an appetite for growth, with the GLAA licence it opens up a lot of doors for us”.
Aligra is a Swindon based, award winning specialist recruitment agency supplying temporary & permanent staff and on-site services to the Logistics, Professional and Executive and Automotive sectors throughout the UK.
If you use workers within your business that are working within a GLA regulated sector and would like more information about how we can help you achieve your goals, please contact us; we are here to ensure your success.
Aligra can be contacted on 01793 512635 or info@aligra.co.uk or by visiting their website www.aligra.co.uk