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Welcome to B & M Bulletin, produced specifically for IT specialists. In this issue:
• Avoiding age discrimination
• Tech View – Wireless network security
• Specialist profile - Senior Test Analyst Gary Jones
• B & M staff member profile - Account Manager Kevin Gill
• Ready to work?
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Avoiding age discrimination
HR Manager Melanie Thompson looks at the impact that new regulations against age discrimination may have for contractors
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The new age
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According to the EC Framework Directive, member states must introduce national legislation to combat age discrimination no later than December 2006. Belgium and The Netherlands are among the countries who have already adopted the Directive into their laws and, in the UK, the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 came into effect from the beginning of October. It is now unlawful to discriminate against someone on the grounds of age in the areas of recruitment, promotion, training, retirement (up to 65 years old) and redundancy.
Whilst these regulations primarily affect permanent employees, the recruitment provisions in the legislation apply equally to contract workers. For example, if a customer is looking to take on a contract specialist and requires graduate standard, the customer can ask for a recent graduate (one may graduate at any age), but it is not acceptable to specify a young graduate.
If an employer needs a minimum of 5 years experience for a role then it is likely that they can specify this, as it is a requirement of being able to perform the job. However, asking for 30 years experience could unreasonably discriminate against a younger person. On the other hand, asking for someone's date of birth is not discriminatory as it is needed to help verify a person’s identity.
But where do contractors stand in a case where a customer has a young team and wants someone who will fit into the company culture? It would appear that contractors could be at an advantage over permanent employees here as there is less emphasis on the need for a precise cultural fit (since contracts are only for a limited period of time) and more emphasis on precise skills and experience. In other words, hiring a contractor could be a simpler option.
B & M represents contract specialists by ensuring that they offer customer organisations the right skills, outlook and attitude to fit into a team - regardless of their age. B & M has always adopted an equal opportunities approach to our practices, so our existing vetting and proposal processes will not change.
If you have any concerns regarding the new Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 in the context of IT contracting, please contact people@bmeurope.com
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Tech View: Why you should worry about Wireless Networking
Paul Smith, Technical Manager at B & M, considers the potential perils of Wireless Networking security
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Until recently, the uptake of Wireless LANs (WLAN) was fairly slow. One reason was its low connection speeds (up to around 54Mbps), but September 2006 saw a step nearer to the introduction of protocol 802.11n, which is designed to offer maximum speeds of around 540Mbps by 2008. Combined with the growing availability of laptops with integrated wireless cards, this new protocol is helping to boost the growth of Wireless LANs - an area for which Gartner Research is forecasting a 42% growth in 2007.
The FBI estimates that 70% of Wireless Access Points in the US have no security at all. Of those that do, most are secured using WEP encryption, which offers only a low level of security, while relatively few use the more secure TKIP, WPA and 802.1X encryption standards. At a security conference last year, the FBI demonstrated the detection and breaking of a WLAN secured by WEP - 128 bit keys in just 3 minutes - using freeware.
It is clear that WLAN equipment is often deployed with little thought and planning - notably in the UK, where the prevalence of home working and VPNs put even secured networks at risk.
Organisations that don’t take steps to secure a WLAN may as well stick an Ethernet point into their network out in the street. In the US in 2004, two hackers accessed the Wireless network used by Lowe's hardware stores from one of its car parks. They installed a program that enabled them to capture the credit card information of customers conducting transactions through the stores, causing an estimated $2.5 million in damages. Today, the availability of freeware such as NetStumbler, AirCrack, WEPCrack & AirSnort means that anyone can emulate these hackers.
This is why customers are increasingly realising that they need support from specialists with an understanding of wireless network security. If you have relevant experience, contact B & M to find out about opportunities in the UK and Continental Europe at people@bmeurope.com
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Specialist profile: Senior Test Analyst Gary Jones
Gary Jones explains why contracting suits his lifestyle
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Gary Jones is currently based in The Hague, working on a long-term contract in the operations systems acceptance team of a European public sector organisation as a senior applications tester and z/OS infrastructure specialist. Married with a young son, Gary chose his current position because he says, "This contract has given me the opportunity to work outside the UK and to broaden my business and technical expertise. I also enjoy working with people of so many different nationalities and being able to experience true European culture".
Gary has been at his current organisation for four years in a role that is focused primarily on managing the testing of core applications in a multi-platform environment comprising of Windows 2000 client/server, IBM z/OS and AIX. He provides appropriate test plans and test cases, and co-ordinates the testing for major projects, working closely with in-house application developers.
Gary freely admits that he originally chose to work on contract for the money, but says that nowadays he finds that he values the variety that contracting offers as much as the remuneration. "I enjoy the fact that I focus on new projects using new technologies and methodologies, rather than the mundane daily issues of ICT".
The main benefit to the customer of using contract specialists rather than permanent staff for roles such as the one he performs is that, according to Gary, they can be sure that they are getting the right set of skills for the project in question, for as long as the project demands. A permanent member of staff, on the other hand, may well require expensive training for a project that will only last a short period.
In terms of personal ambitions, Gary is hoping to find a long-term contract "somewhere exotic and hot like Oahu (Hawaii) with easy access to the ocean and the mountains" where he can pursue his love of downhill mountain biking, kite surfing and snow boarding.
For information about opportunities in Europe, contact B & M on people@bmeurope.com
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Real Skills. Real People - B & M's Kevin Gill
This month, we profile Account Manager Kevin Gill
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Kevin recently joined B & M as Account Manager and brings to the business seven years’ experience in the UK IT recruitment market place.
He began his career working with one of the largest IT recruitment organisations in the industry and benefited from its reputation of providing thorough, comprehensive training to its recruitment consultants. This training formed a solid foundation for the need to accurately identify a client’s needs and above all respond quickly and efficiently to their requirements.
Later, Kevin joined Aquent, the largest staffing organisation in America, working from a new ‘test’ office in Reading which was ultimately relocated to London. He spent some time in the US with the main core of the business in Boston MA, Washington DC and Omaha in the mid-West.
The commute to London became onerous and Kevin then joined a niche consultancy supplier in Newbury as Recruitment Manager supervising a small team that catered solely for the software industry. With his team he developed the recruitment arm of the business to become the main source of revenue by organic growth and, above all, by providing an unrivalled service to his client base.
Kevin spends his spare time with his baby son or renovating his Victorian family home. He also enjoys playing golf (badly) and is often shown up by one of his brothers, who is thirteen years his junior!
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Our contact programme means that we endeavour to keep in touch with all our specialists regularly - but sometimes this is not as often as we would like. This means that we do not have an up-to-date CV for some specialists - making it difficult for us to assess your suitability for a contract position. You may be overlooked if your CV does not include your most recent skills. If you have updated your CV, please send it to people@bmeurope.com so we can ensure that we are in the best possible position to find you suitable work.
One of B & M's customers is currently seeking a Senior Network Security Specialist in Belgium for a contract of 6 months, with the opportunity of further work. For more information, or to find out about other contracts in the UK, Eire and Europe please visit our web site.
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B & M has specialised in delivering skilled ICT specialists to meet the needs of leading organisations throughout Europe since 1992. We focus exclusively on providing consultancy, technical services and support for z/OS, UNIX and Linux enterprise systems, including third-party systems software, open systems and networking connectivity. We add real value for HR and IT professionals by taking the time to understand their needs and applying best practice methods to deliver results. To find out more about our approach to providing the best skills for each business, go to www.bmeurope.com B & M Europe Limited
www.bmeurope.com
+44 (0)118 981 1880
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