Wet Arbeidsmarkt in Balans: what do you need to know?

Last Wednesday, 1 January 2020, the Wet Arbeidsmarkt in Balans (Balanced Labour Market Act) came into force. The aim of this act is to narrow the gap between permanent work and flexible work. That's why a number of measures have been introduced to make it more attractive for employers to take on employees on permanent contracts. These measures also affect the recruitment industry. Because this may have an impact on your recruitment strategy, we've untangled the maze of online information and listed the most important points.

Extension of the chain rule

There will be a more generous rule for successive temporary contracts (the chain rule). Currently, you can offer an employee a maximum of three consecutive contracts over a period of no more than two years. That is being extended to three consecutive contracts in three years.

On-call contracts

Many temp agencies work with zero-hours contracts, min-max contracts and the exclusion of continued payment of wages. Under the Wet Arbeidsmarkt in Balans, all these contract types are classed as on-call contracts. This means an entirely new way of working, in which the contract types and the way temporary workers are called in need to be looked at carefully.

The Wet Arbeidsmarkt in Balans stipulates that on-call workers with a zero-hours or min/max contract are only obliged to come to work if you call them in at least four days in advance. If you don't, they have the right to refuse the work. And if you cancel a call to work less than four days in advance, you still have to pay on-call workers. After a contract period of twelve months, as an employer you're obliged to offer the on-call worker a contract for the average number of hours they worked in that year.

Payroll

From 1 January 2020, temporary workers who are not placed with a client through the agency's own recruitment and selection (allocation) no longer fall under the temporary agency regime, but under the payroll regime. Payroll workers are currently still subject to the same, lighter employment law rules as temporary agency workers. But this is going to change. Under the Wet Arbeidsmarkt in Balans, payroll workers get virtually the same status as the client's own employees.

The equality between payroll workers and your own employees covers both primary and secondary terms of employment. So not only salary and holiday pay, but also performance pay or a thirteenth-month payment, holiday entitlement and so on. Only for pensions does a payroll worker fall under the payroll company's own scheme. So you'll pay more for the labour of payroll workers, which will probably make this type of contract less attractive.

Sector payroll classification

All temp agencies will be classified in sector 52. This creates a level playing field among temp agencies. This doesn't apply to payroll companies. They will end up in sector 45. Premiums in sector 52 are considerably higher than in other sectors. For temp agencies already classified in sector 52, little will probably change. Temp agencies migrating from other sectors to sector 52 will pay more in social security contributions.

Previously, another sector could be used for certain positions, which kept costs lower. That is no longer possible.

The Wet Arbeidsmarkt in Balans in a nutshell:

• It becomes possible to offer staff 3 temporary contracts in 3 years;
• Temp agencies have to work with on-call contracts;
• Payroll workers get the same status as your own employees, with the exception of pensions, and therefore become more expensive;
• As a temp agency, you can no longer run payroll in a different sector, which may lead to higher costs;
• You'll find all the details on the website of the Rijksoverheid (Dutch government).

Want to know how our campaigns fit in with the Wet Arbeidsmarkt in Balans? Then get in touch with us!

Curious what this means for you or your organisation?

We'd be happy to tell you more.