The Netherlands’ More Security for Flex Workers Bill Has Been Enacted: What Does This Mean for Employers?

On July 7, 2026, the Senate of the Dutch Parliament approved the More Security for Flex Workers Act (“the Act”). Under the Act, which takes effect on January 1, 2028, employees with flexible employment contracts will have greater security regarding their income and working hours. 

In the Netherlands, 3 out of 10 employees currently have what is known as a flexible contract, where the scope and/or duration of the contract is not clearly defined or guaranteed. Nowhere else in Europe is that percentage so high. 

The Act is part of a broader reform of the labor market and introduces a number of significant changes for employers that use temporary employment contracts, on-call workers, and/or temporary agency workers—also known as the “flexible workforce.”

What is changing?

The most important changes are:

• Less leeway for successive temporary contracts. It is still possible to enter into three consecutive, fixed-term contracts for a maximum of 36 months, but in order to break the chain, the Act requires an interruption of more than 36 months (this currently stands at more than 6 months). This change is expected to prevent nearly 100% of the so-called revolving-door situations.
• The zero-hours contract will no longer be allowed. Instead, the Act introduces a bandwidth contract. A minimum and a maximum number of hours are agreed, whereby the difference between the two may not exceed 30%. This means that if the minimum is 10 hours, the maximum is 13 hours. Employees may refuse calls to work that exceed the maximum limit. And if an employee works more hours on a regular basis, they must be offered a contract with a higher number of hours. However, the Act does provide an exception for side jobs held by people who have another primary occupation, such as those eligible for the old age pension, high school students, and college students.
• More protection for temporary workers. Under the Act, temporary workers must be provided with terms of employment that are at least equivalent to those of regular employees. As far as remuneration is concerned, this had already been established by a ruling of the European Court of Justice, but this now therefore applies to all terms of employment as well. In addition, the most vulnerable phases for temporary workers will be shortened, and the Minister will be given the authority to intervene in cases of systemic underpayment in the temporary employment sector. This provision will take effect earlier, specifically on December 31, 2026. 

The purpose of the Act is clear: regular work should, as far as possible, be carried out on the basis of a permanent employment relationship, i.e., on the basis of an employment contract for an indefinite period.

What does this mean for employers?

Companies that regularly rely on on-call workers, temporary contracts, or temporary agency workers would be wise to assess, over the coming months, whether their staffing strategy—and specifically, how they utilize a flexible workforce—remains future-proof. 

Considerations could include:

• the use of on-call staff and the scheduling of shifts; 
• the use of successive temporary contracts/temporary seasonal contracts; 
• the use of temporary workers for ongoing tasks; 
• the development of a long-term staff planning strategy; 
• how many and which (groups of) employees will be subject to the new rules; 
• how many and which types of contracts will need to be amended; 
• what is the financial and organizational impact of the changes? 

Now that the Act has actually been enacted, this is the perfect time for employers to prepare for these changes, take a critical look at their work organization and their flexible workforce in particular, and ensure that it complies with the new rules.