Johannesburg — PRIVATE employment agencies wanted tough regulatory measures to curb the mushrooming of illegal employment agencies, the Confederation of Associations in the Private Employment Sector (Capes) said yesterday.

Capes executive committee member Sandra Burmeister, CEO of Landelahni Recruitment Group, said proposals to form a private employment agency board to regulate the industry had been tabled at the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac). These were under consideration.

The idea, she said, was that the regulatory board would work closely with the labour department to register and deregister private employment agencies, enforce codes of good practice, investigate complaints and take action against unscrupulous labour brokers.

This is in line with the International Labour Organisation conventions that propose tripartite regulation of private employment agencies, along with relevant legislation and regulatory practices.

"Prominent legal practitioners drafted proposed regulations that would allow for the desired regulation. As part of broader labour market negotiations, the resultant document has been submitted to various social partners for negotiation and is still a work in progress.

"Core to the proposal is the need to partner with the department of labour in respect of areas such as the registration, regulation and deregistration of agencies in the temporary employment sector to eradicate operators of poor repute and ensure that the real value of the industry is acknowledged," she said.

The industry in SA self-regulates under member associations which have united under Capes to create a representative body for the temporary employment sector. However, they represent a third of such agencies and do not have the " teeth" to take on unscrupulous agencies.