In a move that will be welcomed by business owners in the print industry, European legislation that would give agency workers the right to the same pay, holidays and conditions as full-time staff, will be brought in at the latest possible date.

The adoption of the legislation was a condition of the UK retaining its opt-out of the European Working Time Directive and will cover the rights of 1.3m workers in the UK.

Business minister Pat McFadden said that the decision was made to delay the introduction of the legislation to "avoid changing the requirements on business until the economic recovery is more firmly established".

Dani Novick managing director of Mercury Search and Selection said that the legislation will result in significant increases in costs for employers who use agency staff.

"Many will be relieved to see the implementation has been postponed until after the next general election.  Who knows it may be kicked into the long grass permanently. 

"Of course there are those who will say that it is bad news and will see workers exploited, but many people choose this route precisely because of the flexibility it affords and are not looking for this change.

Unite, which campaigned for the UK to adopt the legislation, called the move a "scandal".
Assistant general secretary Tony Burke said that he was extremely disappointed at the news, having called for the introduction of "watertight" legislation in a speech at the labour party conference.

"It is a disgrace that the Labour government has left it all this time to introduce the legislation."

He said that temporary workers are being used to replace well paid permanent staff and cited evidence of lawyers giving employers advice on how to get around laws governing agency workers, including defining them as "trainees".

The BPIF and Unite has a code of conduct concerning agency workers in which they are paid the same as permanent staff. However, the code is not legally binding and is only applicable to BPIF members.