Equivalent pay for temporary agency workers: what changes in 2026?

Employment Law

15 January 2026

Equivalent pay for temporary agency workers: what changes in 2026?

Stelt u zich eens voor: u werkt al jaren met dezelfde zelfstandige. Hij stuurt facturen, factureert btw en heeft een eigen kvk-nummer. Toch krijgt u in 2026 ineens vragen van de Belastingdienst over de aard van uw samenwerking. Hoe heeft het zo ver kunnen komen?

The rules for deploying temporary agency workers are changing significantly. New collective labour agreement (CLA) arrangements, recent Supreme Court case law and the Transparent and Predictable Terms of Employment Act (Wtta) are creating a new playing field. Below you can read what these developments mean for agency workers, staffing agencies and hirers.

New CLA as of 1 January 2026: focus on equivalent pay

As of 1 January 2026, a new collective labour agreement applies to agency workers. The central starting point: agency workers are entitled to terms of employment that are equivalent to those of employees at the hirer in a comparable role.

What does equivalent pay mean?

Equivalent pay goes further than just the hourly wage. A distinction is made between:

Essential terms of employment: These include pay, allowances, working and rest times, but also secondary benefits such as training budgets, sports facilities or allowances for, for example, solar panels.
Non-essential terms of employment: Think of the pension contribution paid by the employer. The eventual pension payout itself does not fall under this.

The overall package of essential terms of employment must be at least equivalent to that of the hirer. Small deviations are permitted, provided the agency worker is not worse off overall. For example, a lower pension contribution can be compensated with a higher hourly wage.

The Upfield ruling: limits on long-term deployment

In addition to the new CLA, recent case law is also relevant. In the Supreme Court’s Upfield ruling, the long-term deployment of an agency worker was central: an employee worked for almost 13 years through various staffing agencies at the same hirer. The Supreme Court ruled:

Long-term and structural deployment can point to abuse of the agency-work construction.
If there is no objective, business-related reason for this long-term deployment, this can result in an employment contract for an indefinite period.
The court looks at all the circumstances, such as the duration, the succession of contracts and the nature of the work.

This ruling underlines the importance for employers and staffing agencies of properly motivating and documenting why an agency-work arrangement is temporary. This aligns with the starting point of equivalent treatment: agency workers must not be structurally disadvantaged.

The Wtta and the hirer’s duty to inform

The Transparent and Predictable Terms of Employment Act (Wtta) has applied since 2022 and continues to influence the agency-work landscape. Employers are required to:

Provide extensive information about terms of employment,
Be transparent about training and secondary terms of employment,
Provide clarity about secondary activities and prohibitions on termination.

For agency workers, this means more insight into their rights and terms of employment. Hirers are responsible for correctly providing terms of employment information to the staffing agency. Transparency is essential, because in the event of errors, the agency worker can hold the hirer directly liable.

Conclusion

The agency-work landscape is changing significantly:

Equivalent pay becomes the norm as of 1 January 2026: agency workers get a package of terms of employment comparable to that of colleagues at the hirer.
Upfield ruling: long-term deployment without an objective reason can lead to an employment contract for an indefinite period.
Wtta: increases transparency and strengthens the agency worker’s position; the hirer gets a substantial duty to inform.

Employers, staffing agencies and hirers would be wise to review their processes and agreements in good time. This ensures agency workers are treated correctly and equivalently, and limits legal risks. The corporate lawyers of The Legal Company are happy to help you. Please contact us directly by emailing info@thelegalcompany.nl or call 020 345 0152.

De afgelopen jaren stonden in het teken van de Wet VBAR, het wetsvoorstel dat een einde moest maken aan onduidelijkheid over de zzp’er. Het kabinet heeft delen van dat voorstel inmiddels geschrapt. Op het eerste gezicht is dat goed nieuws: minder regels, minder administratieve last. Maar in de praktijk blijven dezelfde toetsen overeind.

“De inhoud van de samenwerking is leidend, niet wat er op papier staat.”

De Belastingdienst handhaaft sinds 1 januari 2025 weer actief op schijnzelfstandigheid. En recente uitspraken van de Hoge Raad bevestigen dat rechters strikt toetsen of er sprake is van ondergeschiktheid en gezagsverhouding.

Voor uw praktijk betekent dit drie dingen. Een: leg de samenwerking duidelijk vast, met aandacht voor de inhoud. Twee: voorkom dat een zzp’er feitelijk werkt als werknemer. Drie: wees voorbereid op een controle, en weet hoe u de relatie kunt herzien als dat moet.

Heeft u vragen over uw concrete situatie? Wij sparren dagelijks met opdrachtgevers over hun zzp-relaties. Vraag een offerte op of bekijk onze Legal Safe abonnementen.