Half of Dutch temp firms operate without oversight, leaving many migrant workers unpaid

More than half of the 16,000 temporary employment agencies active in the Netherlands allegedly operate without any form of oversight, according to a new sector analysis by industry watchdog SNCU, reported by Het Financieele Dagblad (FD).

“This analysis confirms that a significant group of companies operates under the radar,” SNCU director Jaap Buis told FD. He warned that this creates “an increased risk of abuses for temporary workers and unfair competition for bona fide companies.”

The findings come as Dutch policymakers and labor groups have voiced growing concerns about exploitation in the temporary employment sector, particularly involving migrant workers.

In July, reports emerged that Filipino and Indonesian cleaning staff at Amsterdam luxury gym Saints & Stars were allegedly forced to surrender their passports, work up to 17 hours a day, and share beds.

SNCU, which monitors compliance with the collective labor agreement for temporary staff on behalf of unions and employers, mapped the scale of the problem by linking Chamber of Commerce registration codes with wage data from the UWV, the national social security agency.

The extent also reportedly emerges in complaints filed with the Dutch Labor Inspectorate. In the past three years, the inspectorate received 131 reports from Fairwork, a foundation that supports migrant workers, about employees being underpaid. Allegedly, not a single case led to back pay for the workers involved. According to de Volkskrant, the inspectorate said that recovering wages is not its responsibility, leaving many migrants “disillusioned.”

Fairwork said underpaid migrant workers face “an almost impossible task” in seeking justice. The organization files dozens of reports each year to the Labor Inspectorate about suspected underpayment. Between 2022 and 2024, these included 131 cases, with unpaid amounts ranging from 300 to 10,000 euros.