5 replies to this topic

[Earlgrey]

Hi All

 

 I need to audit our recruitment agencies, and I was wondering if anyone would be willing to share a copy of a recruitment agency audit checklist as I'm not sure what I would need to look into

 

Many thanks

 

[Tony-C]

Hi Earlgrey,

 

An Agency Audit will need to be based on your contracted agreement and a service specification. This will include compliance with employment legislation. Covering training and hygiene rules will be key elements depending on who trains, briefs and supervises the agency staff.

 

As an example of what you need to be considering, I have posted below key elements where agency staff are referred to in the BRCGS Food standard:

 

1.1.3 Food safety and quality objectives -Communication to staff (including all employees and agency supplied staff).

1.2.2 Staff roles and responsibilities - Agency staff briefed to ensure that food safety, authenticity, legality and quality are maintained.

4.11.4 Training and resources - Training records must demonstrate that the relevant training has been completed and must cover all staff involved in cleaning activities, including employment agency and temporary staff.

7.1 Personnel Training - Seasonal/temporary personnel and contractors must be included. Where employment agencies are used for the provision of staff, all the requirements in this section need to be adequately met and evidenced. This may include: • specifying company policies within any supply contract • obtaining evidence of staff training records from the agency prior to a staff member commencing work • using a risk-based system to challenge staff understanding and ensure competence in carrying out roles.

7.1.1 All personnel, including agency-supplied staff, temporary staff and contractors, shall be appropriately trained prior to commencing work and adequately supervised throughout the working period.

7.1.3 The site shall put in place documented programmes

Guidance: • training provided by employment agencies, prior to the agency-supplied staff commencing roles at the site. (In this situation, the site will need to ensure that the agency has the necessary knowledge and training in order to subsequently train staff supplied to the site.)

7.1.4 All personnel, including engineers, agency-supplied staff, temporary staff and contractors, shall have received general allergen awareness training and be trained in the site’s allergen handling procedures.

7.1.5 All relevant personnel (including relevant agency-supplied staff, temporary staff and contractors) shall have received training on the site’s labelling and packing processes which are designed to ensure the correct labelling and packing of products.

7.1.6 Training records for any temporary agency-supplied staff and/or external consultants must also be available.

7.2 All personnel, including agency-supplied staff, contractors and visitors entering production areas (including raw material storage, preparation, processing, packing and storage areas), must adhere to the company’s documented personal hygiene rules, including those regarding personal belongings, hand-washing, injuries, illness and medication.

7.3 Medical screening

The company shall have procedures in place to ensure that staff, agency staff, contractors or visitors are not a source of transmission of infections, diseases (including food-borne diseases) or conditions to products.

7.4.1 Requirements The company shall document and communicate to all staff (including agency and temporary personnel), contractors and visitors the rules regarding the wearing of protective clothing in specified work areas (e.g. production areas, storage areas). This shall also include policies relating to the wearing of protective clothing away from the production environment (e.g. removal before entering toilets, and use of canteen and smoking areas).

7.4.2 Guidance: Clothing must be available for all staff working in production and storage areas (including employment agency staff, temporary staff and contractors).

 

There may be other areas to cover but that is all I can think of at this moment.

 

Kind regards,

 

Tony

 

[Earlgrey]

Many thanks Tony, that's very helpful

[TimG]

Wow, this is a new one to me!

I wish we would have held our temp agencies to any type of standard. We used to be just glad when the temps were somewhat literate here stateside...

[liberator]

Hi Earlgrey,

 

An Agency Audit will need to be based on your contracted agreement and a service specification. This will include compliance with employment legislation. Covering training and hygiene rules will be key elements depending on who trains, briefs and supervises the agency staff.

 

As an example of what you need to be considering, I have posted below key elements where agency staff are referred to in the BRCGS Food standard:

 

1.1.3 Food safety and quality objectives -Communication to staff (including all employees and agency supplied staff).

1.2.2 Staff roles and responsibilities - Agency staff briefed to ensure that food safety, authenticity, legality and quality are maintained.

4.11.4 Training and resources - Training records must demonstrate that the relevant training has been completed and must cover all staff involved in cleaning activities, including employment agency and temporary staff.

7.1 Personnel Training - Seasonal/temporary personnel and contractors must be included. Where employment agencies are used for the provision of staff, all the requirements in this section need to be adequately met and evidenced. This may include: • specifying company policies within any supply contract • obtaining evidence of staff training records from the agency prior to a staff member commencing work • using a risk-based system to challenge staff understanding and ensure competence in carrying out roles.

7.1.1 All personnel, including agency-supplied staff, temporary staff and contractors, shall be appropriately trained prior to commencing work and adequately supervised throughout the working period.

7.1.3 The site shall put in place documented programmes

Guidance: • training provided by employment agencies, prior to the agency-supplied staff commencing roles at the site. (In this situation, the site will need to ensure that the agency has the necessary knowledge and training in order to subsequently train staff supplied to the site.)

7.1.4 All personnel, including engineers, agency-supplied staff, temporary staff and contractors, shall have received general allergen awareness training and be trained in the site’s allergen handling procedures.

7.1.5 All relevant personnel (including relevant agency-supplied staff, temporary staff and contractors) shall have received training on the site’s labelling and packing processes which are designed to ensure the correct labelling and packing of products.

7.1.6 Training records for any temporary agency-supplied staff and/or external consultants must also be available.

7.2 All personnel, including agency-supplied staff, contractors and visitors entering production areas (including raw material storage, preparation, processing, packing and storage areas), must adhere to the company’s documented personal hygiene rules, including those regarding personal belongings, hand-washing, injuries, illness and medication.

7.3 Medical screening

The company shall have procedures in place to ensure that staff, agency staff, contractors or visitors are not a source of transmission of infections, diseases (including food-borne diseases) or conditions to products.

7.4.1 Requirements The company shall document and communicate to all staff (including agency and temporary personnel), contractors and visitors the rules regarding the wearing of protective clothing in specified work areas (e.g. production areas, storage areas). This shall also include policies relating to the wearing of protective clothing away from the production environment (e.g. removal before entering toilets, and use of canteen and smoking areas).

7.4.2 Guidance: Clothing must be available for all staff working in production and storage areas (including employment agency staff, temporary staff and contractors).

 

There may be other areas to cover but that is all I can think of at this moment.

 

Kind regards,

 

Tony

Great list Tony, 

 

above as well and typical personal hygiene requirements, nails, smoking etc, hate to have someone role up to work in an open food processing are wearing makeup perfume, false nails and eyelashes, believe me it happens. Might also need to consider, police checks, drug and alcohol, relevant licences - e.g. forklift? Occupation health and safety requirements, protective footwear, all out of the scope of typical GFSI requirements but relevant for most companies.

[GMO]

Depends what the audit is for. Are you SEDEX / SMETA audited at site? If so, while I completely agree with everyone who is about to tell me that this is not in the scope of role for a person in QFS, I'd still use that standard too and audit against those requirements at the same time because trust me, you get a crappy SMETA audit, it's going to be your retailer technical contacts complaining at you later. So things like not excessive working hours, fair overtime pay, no deductions etc.

 

Also with the list up above, if you only train in English, I'd check how your agency are checking English proficiency and if they're training your staff, I would also sit in on a training session to see what it's like if you have the time.