Employment trade body responds to BBC report on mini umbrellas

Responding to BBC reports which state that more than 40,000 people from the Philippines have been recruited to front British companies as part of mini umbrella schemes resulting in lost tax revenue, The Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo) has said that it is shocked at the scale of the abuse.

Responding to the news reports, Tania Bowers, Legal Counsel and Head of Public Policy at APSCo said:

“The recruitment sector needs to be aware of risks across their umbrella supply chains which is why APSCo insists that all umbrella companies wishing to become APSCo Trusted Partners must go through a robust due diligence process. We also work with other bodies such as Professional Passport and the FCSA to ensure umbrella companies are audited and work in close contact with HMRC and BEIS as well as The Association of Compliance Organisations (ASCOR).

“We expect our members to offer workers a choice of umbrella companies and recommend an Approved Supplier List of APSCo Trusted Partners, FCSA and Professional Passport members which offers both choice in number and compliance protection for clients and workers. We have worked on this basis for several years and this is in alignment generally with frameworks issued by the Crown Commercial Services.

“APSCo provides regular guidance to educate everyone in the supply chain to ensure that non-compliant and unscrupulous providers are not being used.”

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