Stricter rules: Half of employers stopped hiring freelancers, fifth hiring more
Most Dutch employers agree that it is a good thing that the Tax Authority is tackling fake self-employment, but they are divided about how they deal with the stricter rules. About half are scaling down their hiring of self-employed workers, while 44 percent are continuing to use them, including 20 percent who are hiring more freelancers, De Telegraaf reports from a Randstad survey of almost 1,100 employers.
The employment agency asked its business clients how they view the new rules for freelancers. “What they agree on is that they do not find the legislation clear enough,” Randstad researcher Bart van Krimpen told the newspaper. “They also complain across the board that this increases their administrative burden instead of reducing it.”
Particularly large companies and organizations with more than 250 employees have become more cautious. 57 percent expect to make less use of self-employed workers this year. Freelancers can also expect less work from a significant proportion of small and medium-sized businesses with less than 250 employees. 49 percent of them expect to scale down on their hiring of self-employed persons.
44 percent of employers plan to continue using freelancers. One in five employers said that they will hire more freelancers than before the stricter rules. These employers say they need freelancers because of the flexibility and expertise they offer. A third of employers think that their organization will be less successful without self-employed workers.
The hospitality industry, retail, and IT, in particular, want to hire more self-employed workers, with a third of employers in these sectors saying so. Freelancers in healthcare and the government are out of luck. 63 percent of healthcare employers and 58 percent of government employers want to become less dependent on self-employed workers.
