Eden Brown, CDI and Hays, and associated subsidiaries were found by the OFT to be using the Construction Recruitment Forum to fix prices and work to keep new entrant Parc in its place. Parc set itself up as a ‘middle man’ between the agencies and construction companies and the agencies feared their margins being eroded. The agencies therefore collectively agreed to boycott Parc.
The Competition Appeal Tribunal agreed with the agencies that the OFT should have used net fees rather than gross turnover as the starting point for determining fines. It also said that the application by the OFT of a so-called “minimum deterrence threshold” to deter undertakings from engaging in anti-competitive behaviour was inappropriately mechanistic.
The tribunal cut the fines each company has to pay to what it considers a more proportionate level .
Eden Brown Ltd’s original total penalty of £1,072,069 was reduced to £477,750.
CDI AndersElite Ltd and CDI Corp saw their original total penalty of £7,602,789 cut to £1,543,500.
Hays plc, Hays Specialist Recruitment Ltd, and Hays Specialist Recruitment (Holdings) Ltd had their original total penalty of £30,359,129 brought down to £5,880,000.
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