Our Managing Director had an exciting interview with GHOne,a television station in Accra, and we thought we would share snippets of her interview with our readers.GHOne had interviewed a number of unemployed graduates about their search for suitable employment and discovered that there was a trend: many unemployed graduates confirmed that they registered with Private Employment Agencies (as they are called legally, but for this article, we will refer to them by their popular name, “Recruitment Agencies”) to assist them in finding suitable employment. In some cases, these unemployed graduates did not secure a job placement after paying the prescribed fees to the Recruitment Agencies, and their monies were not refunded. In other cases, the unemployed graduates were able to secure job placements but had to pay a percentage of their salaries to the Recruitment Agencies. One unemployed graduate confirmed that he had to resign from his job because the amount he retained after paying a percentage to the Recruitment Agency was very insignificant and not enough to provide for his basic needs.
Before you engage a Recruitment Agency in your search for a job, it is important to have an idea about the legal framework that governs Recruitment Agencies, which include the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651) (“Labour Act”), the Labour Regulations, 2007 (L.I. 1833) (“Labour Regulations”), the Contracts Act, 1960 (Act 25) (“Contracts Act”) and Notices issued by the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations. The Labour Act and Labour Regulations define a “Private Employment Agency” as “any body corporate, which acts as an intermediary for the purpose of procuring employment for a job seeker or recruiting a worker for an employer, including services consisting of employing workers with the view to making them available to third parties to work under supervision.”
Let’s look at this a bit more closely. Firstly, it is totally legal to secure employment through Recruitment Agencies. In order to operate as a Recruitment Agency, a body corporate must register as a company limited by shares at the Companies Registry and subsequently, register for a license to operate with the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations (the “Ministry”), which is the regulator of the employment and labour sector in Ghana. A Recruitment Agency’s terms of operation are subject to the terms and conditions contained in the license granted to it by the Ministry. The Ministry has published a Notice on its website specifying the requirements and the procedure for obtaining a license from the Ministry as a Recruitment Agency. The Ministry has further provided a list of licensed Recruitment Agencies. Therefore, it is incumbent on those seeking employment, to conduct some research before registering with a Recruitment Agency.
Secondly, Recruitment Agencies may charge clients fees for their service under the law, however, they are also required to refund 50% of fees paid by clients where they are unable to secure a job for them after 3 months. It is important to note that where the arrangement between a job seeker and a Recruitment Agency ends at a job placement, the latter may not take part of the successful job seeker (now employee). The Recruitment Agency should, therefore, not be involved in salary deductions between an employer and his or her employee. However, where the relationship between the job seeker and the Recruitment Agency is that of an employer/employee relationship and the employee has agreed to a deduction from his or her salary, the employer may conform to such an agreement as this is permitted under the law. Furthermore, should a client (who is not an employee of a Recruitment Agency) accept this arrangement with a Recruitment Agency, he or she becomes subject to those contractual terms and the Contracts Act will govern that relationship.
Thirdly, there are penalties imposed on Recruitment Agencies who flout the law. They are liable to pay a fine of GHS 300.00 (twenty-five penalty units). Victims can report any illegal acts done by the Recruitment Agencies to the Ministry who has been clothed with the authority to impose this fine.Finally,It is vital to seek legal advice before engaging in such recruitment arrangements. When in doubt, please check on the Ministry’s website (http://www.melr.gov.gh)to confirm that a Recruitment Agency is licensed with them before applying with them.
This article is written and edited by the team at VINT Limited, a company specializing in trustee services, business advisory, corporate restructuring, and compliance and regulatory management. For more information, email VINT Limited at [email protected]or visit www.vintlimited.com.
