Transaction in Own Shares

Hays PLC
09 August 2005

                                    Hays plc

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                             Purchase of own shares

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Hays plc announces that it has purchased the following number of its ordinary
shares of £0.01 each on the London Stock Exchange via UBS Investment Bank.



Ordinary shares:



Date of purchase:                                           09 August 2005



Number of ordinary shares purchased:                        1,353,181




Highest price paid per share:                               131p



Lowest price paid per share:                                129p



Volume weighted average price per share:                    130.1101p



Hays intends to hold the purchased shares in treasury.



Following the purchase of these shares, Hays holds 117,276,404 of its ordinary
shares in treasury and has 1,618,614,718 ordinary shares in issue (excluding
treasury shares).




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