Transaction in Own Shares

Hays PLC
16 August 2005


                                    Hays plc
                         ------------------------------
                             Purchase of own shares
                         ------------------------------

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:                                   16 August 2005

Number of ordinary shares purchased:                1,900,000

Highest price paid per share:                       132.25p

Lowest price paid per share:                        131.75p

Volume weighted average price per share:            132.124p


Hays intends to hold the purchased shares in treasury.

Following the purchase of these shares, Hays holds 124,806,869 of its ordinary
shares in treasury and has 1,611,084,253 ordinary shares in issue (excluding
treasury shares).


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