More young adults entering work via platform companies

The number of young people who work as self-employed through a platform company has risen sharply in the past year. In July, 9,613 such entrepreneurs were registered with the Chamber of Commerce (KVK) in the business services sector. A year ago, there were 7,492, the KVK reported.

The number of registrations in the relevant category was 181 percent higher in July than a year ago. According to the KVK, the increase is almost entirely attributable to young people who started working through platform construction. This group mainly consists of students, holiday workers, and young people who earn extra in their free hours.

According to Jessica van El, an expert on Young Entrepreneurship at the KVK, working for a platform company seems “attractive to young people.” After all, they can decide for themselves when they are available to work. But she warns: “This makes you an entrepreneur yourself. You will not be paid if you get sick, you will not receive any vacation days, and you will not build up a pension.”

According to the KVK, the total number of new entrepreneurs increased by 3 percent annually in July to 20,796. The number of quitters rose by 6 percent to 9,593. The number of bankruptcies in July stood at 127, slightly below the average of the past 12 months.

In total, the Netherlands counted almost 2.3 million companies as of August 1, 5 percent more than a year earlier.