1. Independent contractors
15 April 2018
Arco Siemons
Wieringa Advocaten

2. Employees vs. contractors
- Minimum wage
- Payment during illness
- Social security
- Paid holiday
- Termination protection (“preventive system”)

3. Employees vs. contractors
- Statutory entitlements
- Often: extra entitlements under cba (pension!)

4. Employees vs. contractors
nothing

5. A (very) brief history Before 1999: - rigid system
- only one temporary contract
- preventive system (since 1945)

6. A (very) brief history 1999: overhaul (“Flexibility and security”)
- more consecutive temporary contracts
- temp agencies rise
- payroll companies
- preventive system stays

7. A (very) brief history Result: - flexible layer of employment
- “fixed” layer becomes more impenetrable
- flex is too flex, fixed is too fixed

8. A (very) brief history 2015: new major overhaul (“Work and security”)
- limitation on temporary contracts
- entitlement to severance for all (after two years)
- terminations more formal
- preventive system stays

9. A (very) brief history Result so far: - fixed is even more fixed
- fixed layer remains impenetrable
- legislation failed, low predictability (civil, tax)

10. Case law Fragmented case law on nature of contracts
Contractors sometimes employees
- depends on number of circumstances
- case by case, low predictability

11. Case law
Some contractors indeed deemed employees
“sham-independency”

12. What now? Proposed legislation:
- security for contractors (minimum rate, pension, insurance
- legislation to grant security about nature or contract

13. And until then ...
.... we are a nation at sea