10 Questions Every Employer Should Ask Their Recruitment Agency

(Before the taxman comes knocking)

JSL just dropped. A lot of companies are suddenly realising they have zero clue who’s actually supplying their temporary workers.

HR, Procurement, Finance — one question matters more than the rest:

Do you actually know your labour supply chain… or are you just hoping everything’s fine?

Agencies and umbrella companies aren’t the enemy. Blindness is.

Whether you run 10 temps or 10,000, ask these 10 questions. Right now.

1. Who the hell is supplying our temporary workforce?

Sounds basic. Most companies still can’t answer it cleanly.

•  Which agencies?

•  Any second-tier suppliers hiding in the chain?

•  Umbrella companies in the mix?

If you don’t know the full chain, you don’t control it.

2. Can you show me the entire labour supply chain in one place?

Fragmented data across sites and managers is how problems hide.

Ask for one consolidated view: workers, spend, performance, everything.

If they can’t give you that, they’re part of the problem.

3. How do you actually audit compliance?

One-and-done audits are theater.

How often? Who does them? Independent? Can they show current certificates?

Regular independent audits surface issues early. Everything else is cope.

4. Can I get real management information?

Decisions without data are just vibes.

Demand:

•  Spend

•  Fill rates

•  Headcount

•  Tenure

•  Dropout

•  Time-to-fill

If the reporting is weak, the partnership is weak.

5. How do you manage supplier performance?

KPIs. Reviews. Consequences for underperformance.

Transparent tracking or it’s just theater. Accountability or nothing.

6. How do you actually improve our governance?

JSL raised the stakes.

Do they just fill roles, or do they tighten oversight, reporting, and supplier control?

Filling vacancies is table stakes. Real partners raise the standard.

7. Can you find the inefficiencies we’re blind to?

Duplicated suppliers. Random charge rates. Pointless admin.

Good independent eyes usually surface waste fast. Most companies are sitting on it.

8. Do we get one clear point of contact?

One strong contact simplifies everything. Coordination beats chaos.

9. How ready are we for the next round of legislation?

Rules keep changing.

Do they keep you ahead of it, or do you find out the hard way?

Proactive beats reactive every time.

Why visibility actually matters

You cannot manage what you cannot see.

Full stop.

Better visibility = stronger governance, real accountability, better decisions, cleaner processes.

Everything else is noise.

How MAK Jobs helps

We give companies actual visibility and control over temporary labour through proper Managed Service and Onsite solutions.

We run as an extension of your team.

Pre-screened workers. Real reporting. 24/7 onsite capability. Digital timekeeping. Compliance that isn’t just slides. Transport when needed. One accountable team.

We don’t just send bodies. We tighten the system so you can see it, measure it, and run it properly.

Quick FAQs

Why does visibility matter under JSL?

Because if you can’t see the chain, you own the risk. Visibility reduces the chance of getting hit for unpaid PAYE and NICs.

What should you ask agencies?

Supplier control, real reporting, audit process, governance, performance tracking. Soft answers = red flags.

What’s a proper managed / onsite service?

Someone who runs the temporary workforce system for you — coordination, reporting, compliance, visibility — instead of just competing for the next order.

Why MAK Jobs?

Industrial, warehouse, driving, manufacturing. Round-the-clock. Competitive. Pre-screened. Dedicated account management. Onsite teams that act like part of your operation. Neutral-to-master flexibility. Real data. Real accountability.

Stop hoping. Start knowing.