Reply to: Anti Competitive behaviour

[jmo21]

price fixing is about setting high prices on goods/services.

It is not about the unfairness of client refusal to pay more than they want to.

Should we contractors do the same? Complain about clients refusing to pay us more per day?

[AtW]

Is the point not that they are stopping DA from earning a better living through unfair and possibly illegal/anti-competitive behaviour?

Nobody is stopping him - they are just refusing to pay as much as they paid in the past. He is just saying that his game plan was shafted because agents ain't getting as much as before to justify that parasitic (in my view) behavior.

What if companies refused to use agents at all and required direct contact with their HR, would that be anti competitive?

Anti-competitive *might* be using exclusively dominant recruiter who'd use its market position to gain unfair advantage.

[oracleslave]

Y

Anyhow, my question to you yet again - what makes you think companies owe you a living?

Is the point not that they are stopping DA from earning a better living through unfair and possibly illegal/anti-competitive behaviour?

[AtW]

what are you on about?

You started this thread talking about declined margins in that business.

btw, from this I note that clearly you were not in it in order to help find poor employees much better employer.

Anyhow, my question to you yet again - what makes you think companies owe you a living? They can choose to use your services or not surely, and if they offer 5% margin and it's not enough for you then you could do something else.

Like real head hunting for example.

[DodgyAgent]

What makes you think companies owe you a living? If agents were providing really valuable services in that case then companies would continue using them. If you actually get them people who make money add value, then there is problem paying you a %-tage of that. Simples?

what are you on about?

[AtW]

I do however use referrals and will pick up names to call using any devious means that I can

I could give you a referral if you want

[DodgyAgent]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_search

In IT non-executives can be head hunted - usually they are top people (among their peers), some of the main signs of real head hunt are:

a) small number of people - very high value
b) people are often named, ie - head hunt Bill Gates or limited to people who are top in a given field (up to agent to find them)

I doubt you do head hunting

I am not a headhunter, nor have ever claimed to be one. I do however use referrals and will pick up names to call using any devious means that I can

[AtW]

cheaper to get the OFT to do it

Why won't you start with lawyers first then - they've got artificially limited supply using monopoly of Law Society, first deal with them, and after you succeed you can move over to your alleged cartel.

[AtW]

What makes you think companies owe you a living? If agents were providing really valuable services in that case then companies would continue using them. If you actually get them people who make money add value, then there is problem paying you a %-tage of that. Simples?

[DodgyAgent]

Why won't you ask it to your company lawyers? Whilst at it ask them why their charges are so high across most lawyer firms...

cheaper to get the OFT to do it

[DodgyAgent]

The final decision on how much to pay agents rests with the company - they might just refuse to pay anything and invite people to apply direct: they won't owe agents a living, in fact if the system functioned correctly in the first place there would be no need for agents in the first place. They would only be feasible for high value head hunting jobs, ie: £1 mln+.

[AtW]

No matter how much coercing, begging, pleading, crying promising an agent does surely the decision rests with you as to whether you take a job or not?

The final decision on how much to pay agents rests with the company - they might just refuse to pay anything and invite people to apply direct: they won't owe agents a living, in fact if the system functioned correctly in the first place there would be no need for agents in the first place. They would only be feasible for high value head hunting jobs, ie: £1 mln+.

[oracleslave]

Indeed
But without the agents how many would have to make that decision in the first place?

Hence why I am on DA's side with this. I just don't think regulation will help, happy to be proven wrong though.

[Spacecadet]

No matter how much coercing, begging, pleading, crying promising an agent does surely the decision rests with you as to whether you take a job or not?

Indeed
But without the agents how many would have to make that decision in the first place?

[AtW]

The question is whether such cartels/gentlemans agreements are legal or not.

Why won't you ask it to your company lawyers? Whilst at it ask them why their charges are so high across most lawyer firms...