No, but some folks claim that the hens will start laying a bit sooner if there is a rooster around. They really only need the rooster to produce fertile (hatchable) eggs.
I know pullets lay eggs with or without a roo. But, wouldn't mating (having a roo around) jump start the laying process in the pullet? By getting the pullets body with the egg program, where it might otherwise have doddled around, waiting for eggs to form in her body at her leisure?