The Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) has revealed the cost of a license to labour providers and the timescale required to implement the Gangmasters Licensing Act.
The GLA has adopted a four-banded fee structure for labour providers in a licensing system to be in place before the end of the year.
Businesses with a turnover exceeding £10 million (band A) will be charged £4,000; a £5m-10m turnover (B) will cost £2,000; £1m-£5m (C) will cost £750 and businesses earning up to £1m (D) will pay £250.
However, labour providers with a successful Temporary Labour Working Group (TLWG) audit completed by May 12, 2006, will be eligible for a £250 discount on the fee for applications made before May 31.
Therefore, labour providers with a turnover of less than £1m can claim a free license for the first year.
Meanwhile, applicants who have not had a TWLG audit will be required to pay for a GLA inspection on top of the licensing fee.
Inspection fees will also be issued on a four-tiered basis, with band A charged £2,500, B paying £2,100, C paying £1,850 and D to pay £1,600.
The licensing process will kick off next month and labour providers are invited to apply after April 6.
All labour providers in agricultural picking and packing must be licensed by October 1 2006 and from December 1 it will become an offence for any business to contract the services of an unlicensed gangmaster.
The agreed version of the Gangmaster Licensing Act requires the licensing of all businesses supplying temporary labour for processing and packing activities involving agricultural, fish and shellfish in food supply.
The Government chose this option after a consultation undertaken by Defra last year found it favoured by the vast majority of the industry.
Licenses will not be required for the provision of labour to retailers, caterers or wholesalers, or for short-term loans of workers between farms, individual specialist farms or workers processing non-food products which include an agricultural component.
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