Pier Consulting are now P.I.E.R

A new name for a new beginning: Pier Consulting are now Paul Ingram Employment & Recruitment Ltd. (P.I.E.R).

Our name may have changed, but our commitment to the construction industry hasn’t wavered. P.I.E.R will continue to grow, and will remain at the forefront of M&E recruitment in South Wales.

P.I.E.R go back to basics

Every construction project needs the right workers.

You need workers with the right skills, qualifications, experience, and often, you need them right now. At P.I.E.R, we create bespoke workforce solutions to make sure you get the workers you need, when you need them. We take care of compliance, training, regulations, and legalities, leaving you to focus on the important part: developing your business.

Where did P.I.E.R come from and why did we start?

Our business began because we know how hard it is to find good construction workers. Too often we see construction recruitment firms underestimating their task: sourcing newly qualified workers for skilled roles, ignoring nationwide compliance requirements, and forcing square pegs into round holes.

We wanted to make it easy for businesses to find the right construction workers for their projects. Led by Paul Ingram and a team of knowledgeable, dedicated staff, P.I.E.R provides construction workforce solutions that add value and reduce stress.

Who is Paul Ingram?

Paul Ingram is the Managing Director of P.I.E.R, and the force behind the last 15 years of the business. With almost 30 years of experience in the construction industry, Paul has immersed himself in construction. From on-site labour to experienced electrical engineers, Paul understands the full picture and can help you find a workforce solution that will save time, money, and headaches.

Paul’s hands-on approach to business means he can get the most out of his workers, and give his clients a workforce that is an exact fit. By advising clients to reach out to P.I.E.R as early in their project as possible, Paul can ensure to tick all the boxes when it comes to compliance, skill set, and most importantly, commitment.

A New Era, Same Commitment to Construction

Paul and his team commit to their workers as much as their clients. In striving to provide a first class service, P.I.E.R takes the time to learn the skills, experience, and goals of each and every worker on their books. With a better understanding of the workers available, the team can match projects with the right workers quickly. Upskilling workers through training, advising on best practise, and supporting with paperwork are all included in the P.I.E.R service.

P.I.E.R will shine a spotlight on compliance in construction

In a world where new construction recruitment agencies have been popping up left, right, and centre, compliance in construction has never been more important. 

No one enjoys trawling through paperwork, revising policies, and staying on top of new legislation, but at P.I.E.R, we deal with the nitty-gritty for you. Rather than being bogged down in legal jargon, you’ll be free to channel your energy into other aspects of your business, safe in the knowledge that we’ve got your back.

Why does compliance in construction matter?

Compliance in construction is essential. Ensuring you’re compliant means giving yourself a safety net in case anything goes wrong. If you’re not compliant, you’re putting your business at risk.

What should all recruiters do to remain compliant?

You’re responsible for making sure that any recruiters you work with are compliant. But unless you know what that looks like, it can be tempting to take recruiters at face value, and not ask the important questions. With that in mind, here’s a list of everything recruiters should be doing to protect their clients.

Your recruiter is responsible for making sure that:

• The paperwork they use is right for all of their workers
• Workers are engaged correctly, and terms of engagement are issued
• Key Information Documents (KID)s are issued to workers
• Workers have the right tax status, and that PAYE, holiday pay, and National Insurance is being deducted and paid to HMRC
• Contracts are in place with any umbrella companies they use

Take time to get to know your recruitment company at the start of a project and avoid leaving yourself open to scrutiny from HMRC.

Legal requirements are constantly tightening

Keeping on top of compliance can be tricky, especially when requirements are always shifting. Even though it can be tedious, staying up to date with the latest legislation means you are putting your business and your workers in the best place for success. While it’s frustrating when it feels as though the goalposts have shifted, essentially, compliance is a way to demonstrate that our industry is safe, regulated, and professional.

P.I.E.R strive to ensure you are fully compliant

At P.I.E.R, we take care of compliance on your behalf. Whether you need us to delve into the details, offer advice, and point you in the right direction, we will be on hand at every stage.

Our partners in compliance

Ultimately, how seriously a company takes compliance is an indicator of how seriously they take safety. Compliance legislation exists to make sure companies are taking care of their workers, minimising risk, and providing a quality and trustworthy service for their clients. Compliance has always been and will continue to be a cornerstone of P.I.E.R’s ethos and we have enlisted trusted partners to help us protect you.

As our business grows even further, we are absolutely committed to making sure we are compliant in all aspects of our business.

Why do we use partners to make sure we’re compliant?

Just as we are specialists in construction recruitment, our compliance partners are experts in every aspect of compliance. The recruitment industry is heavily governed, and our aim is to provide our clients with a rock solid service that starts with investing in getting things right from the get go.

SafeRec – a due diligence platform that helps to audit umbrella firms and provide KIDs

SafeRec gives our clients an extra layer of security. The SafeRec platform audits the umbrella firms we work with and provide Key Information Documents (KID) to workers. KIDs became a legal requirement in April 2020, and while we know lots of recruitment agencies don’t offer this service, we won’t ever leave our clients at risk.

LawSpeed – providing our contractual terms for clients and workers

LawSpeed are a legal consultancy that make sure we are legally compliant when we engage workers and clients. The legal requirements of recruitment agencies might be a dull read, but they are vital to generating and retaining respect for our industry.

Concerned your agency doesn’t offer this level of compliance support?

When it comes to our process, we want to be transparent with our clients. You need to know what to look for when comparing recruitment agencies, and if your current construction recruitment firm doesn’t employ this level of due diligence, you need to find out why not.

Where the construction industry is heading

It might feel as though compliance legislation is tightening in our industry, but quite frankly, it’s needed. Construction recruitment has become a race to the bottom, as agencies try and bite off more than they can chew. When things go wrong, our whole industry suffers. Clients and workers are left in the lurch, and the construction industry’s reputation suffers.

Aren’t all construction recruitment agencies fully compliant?

Sadly not. One of the most common misconceptions is that every recruitment agency follows the same rules. Although every agency should prioritise compliance, it’s becoming increasingly clear that not everyone does. Instead, many agencies hope clients will take them at face value, and not dig any deeper.

Compliance requirements will become ever more stringent

It’s inevitable that in time compliance requirements will become more stringent, and it’s important to secure the right recruitment agency for you as soon as you can. At P.I.E.R, we emphasise the importance of early engagement, and our policy works on every level. Early engagement means we have the time to create a bespoke workforce, implement any training that might be necessary, and engage commitment workers who are with you from the beginning.

Construction businesses will need to be sure that they are protected

Whilst it might be tempting to prioritise the cheapest recruitment solutions over compliance backed recruitment companies, it’s important to realise that compliance is your concern. As a construction business, you will be liable for any mistakes made in regard to compliance, and you could face penalties.

‘In 2020/21, the EAS investigated 1,800 complaints against agencies, carried out more than 170 inspections, recovered more than £130,000 for workers, and successfully prosecuted two companies (as well as had agency directors disqualified from being company directors again).’

P.I.E.R will continue to focus on the latest compliance and legislation

As we move forward into our new era, we will continue to focus on staying up to date with the latest compliance legislation. You can have confidence in our process, our partners, and our plans for the future.

We can help to save you from a paperwork disaster!

With P.I.E.R, you won’t ever need to panic about missing the latest legislation or forgetting to check that you’re compliant. ‘Managing the massive amount of paperwork required every day in a project can be difficult’, but we do the hard work for you.