In 2026, temporary work in the Netherlands is strongly dependent on workers who were born outside the country. This is a consequence of trends that were visible in previous years. Data published by CBS show that more than half of the positions provided through temporary work were filled by migrants.
Table of contents
- Scale and significance of the phenomenon
- Key factors and data
- Structure of workers’ origin
- Short length of stay and its consequences
- Challenges and problems
- Expert analysis
- Recommendations and solutions
- FAQ
Scale and significance of the phenomenon
In order to fill labor shortages in the economy, the Netherlands has largely based its system on the temporary work sector. In 2024, more than 2.3 thousand employment agencies were actively operating, which together provided around 407 thousand jobs.
Considering the scale, we can conclude that temporary work does not only serve as a supplement to the market, but is its important element and finds application especially in areas requiring uninterrupted staffing and high organizational flexibility.
The importance of this sector lies not only in the number of jobs offered, but in its systemic function. Temporary work in the Netherlands increasingly takes on the role of a “buffer zone” of the labor market, in which tensions resulting from labor shortages, demand volatility and cost pressure accumulate. Thanks to this, it is possible to maintain the continuity of production and logistics processes even in conditions of low unemployment and limited availability of local workers.
Among temporary workers themselves, as many as 52.4% were workers born outside the Netherlands, and in the entire sector – counted together with agency administrative staff – this share amounted to 44.4%. To illustrate the scale of the phenomenon, one can go back to 2010, when this share was 27.2%. In a relatively short time, a large increase was recorded, which indicates that the temporary work sector has become an area of particularly strong internationalization of the labor market, significantly outpacing the pace of changes observed in the entire economy.
Looking at this from a macroeconomic perspective, we can conclude that the consequence is a strong dependence of many industries on the efficient functioning of temporary work. This sector has ceased to be a tool allowing for a quick response in the event of sudden increases or seasonality, and has begun to gain increasing importance. We have reached a point where the economy, through temporary employment agencies, absorbs a significant part of the additional labor supply.
Considering the scale, it is not surprising that changes occurring in the temporary work sector significantly affect other industries. Problems with the availability of workers, rising employment costs or organizational conditions will affect the entire supply chain. As a result, temporary work in the Netherlands is not only a barometer of tensions in the labor market, but one of the main factors influencing the country’s economic stability.
Key factors and data
Changes and the impact of the temporary work sector on the overall picture of the economy in the Netherlands are not the result of a crisis or a one-time shock. It is a combination of factors that have been gradually accumulating. Ultimately, temporary work has become the area where tensions and problems appear the fastest and in the most pronounced way.
The greatest importance is the correlation between the demand for labor and the profile of the currently available workforce. The greatest demand is for filling positions requiring availability, physical and shift work, while the qualification structure of local workers increasingly poorly matches these needs. As a result, the temporary work sector plays the role of an adaptive mechanism that enables companies to function despite the growing mismatch in the labor market.
Labor market pressure and structural mismatch
Due to the tight labor market, companies increasingly report problems filling vacancies using local resources. The biggest difficulties occur in agriculture, distribution centers and industry, i.e. in sectors where the number of job offers significantly exceeds the number of candidates willing to take up work. For this reason, international recruitment becomes a necessity if a company wants to maintain its current volume or increase it.
Another problem is the mismatch of qualifications to the nature of available positions. As emphasized by the chief economist of the statistical agency Peter Hein van Mulligen:
This means that the labor market problem does not boil down solely to the number of workers, but to the structure of labor supply. The high level of education of the local workforce does not always correspond to the demand for specific types of work. In such conditions, temporary work becomes a natural channel for acquiring workers from abroad, and its importance systematically grows.
Structure of workers’ origin
A significant majority of temporary workers in the Netherlands are people born in Europe. The largest group consists of Poles, whose number is around 82.5 thousand. The next places are occupied by Romania, Ukraine and Bulgaria, which together fill around 66 thousand temporary jobs. Workers from outside Europe filled over 20 thousand positions.
Although wage differences between Western and Central-Eastern Europe are beginning to blur, workers from this region are characterized by greater mobility and willingness to take up work below their qualifications. Thanks to this, companies gain access to a theoretically stable personnel base. Theoretically, because competition between destination countries for the same candidates continues to grow. In the longer term, this increases pressure on working conditions, living costs and the quality of employment organization.
Short length of stay and its consequences
Contemporary temporary work in the Netherlands is characterized by a short length of stay of a significant part of workers. According to CBS data, over 67% of temporary work is performed by people staying in the country for less than two years. This means that significant parts of many industries operate based on workers at an early stage of adaptation, often without long-term plans related to the Dutch labor market.
From an organizational perspective, a short length of stay changes the way entire teams function. Workers who are just learning work realities, procedures and organizational culture need more support and clear frameworks for action. At the same time, companies must take into account that investment in adaptation does not always translate into long-term cooperation. As a result, the temporary work sector operates in conditions of permanent “workforce liquidity,” which becomes its permanent feature rather than an exception.
Short length of stay also affects workplace relationships. Teams are reconfigured more often, and continuity is sometimes interrupted. This translates into a greater burden on permanent employees and shift leaders, who must constantly onboard new people and somehow compensate for the lack of experience. On the organizational scale, this leads to an increase in indirect costs that are difficult to capture in simple employment calculations.
High turnover as a systemic feature
When an employee’s stay is short-term, turnover is a recurring phenomenon and has a systemic character. This is a consequence of an employment model based on high mobility, and not merely the effect of dissatisfaction or wage levels elsewhere. Since many people treat temporary work as a transitional stage, this limits the possibility of building long-term team stability.
Of course, this affects the way the company functions and its results. Due to constant turnover, periods appear in which the company operates with reduced productivity, there is a greater risk of errors, and a need to involve permanent employees in training new ones. In such conditions, the key factor of success is not the number of available workers, but the company’s ability to operate in conditions of constant change.
This situation also affects the perception of temporary work by workers. This type of employment is for people more an opportunity for quick earnings than an element of building a stable career path. As a result, temporary work in the Netherlands increasingly clearly functions as a market segment based on short employment cycles, the consequences of which are felt not only at the level of individual companies, but of the entire economy.
Challenges and problems
International worker mobility is a model whose structure has significant tensions. Thanks to this solution, enterprises can quickly respond to staff shortages, but must also face greater employment complexity. In 2026, challenges related to responsibility in the chain of intermediaries, the organization of accommodation and transport, and communication in a multilingual environment are particularly visible.
Companies compete for short-term workers, and because many of them are present in the country, even small deviations from a migrant’s expectations may result in their departure. The effect of this state of affairs is that companies operate in a mode of continuous recruitment, and their ability to maintain stability depends more on HR activities than on the availability of candidates.
Expert analysis
From the perspective of Intraservis experts, CBS data only confirm what has long been said in the context of the Netherlands. Temporary work is currently a permanent element of the labor market structure, which is strongly dependent on labor migration. Competitive advantage therefore lies not only in the quick acquisition of workers, but also in the ability to properly onboard them, create appropriate conditions for them and retain these people within organizational structures.
Although pay rates of course significantly influence the choice of workplace, schedule predictability, clear rules, good communication and organizational support determine whether an employee stays with a company. This is probably the most important factor when the market operates in a model in which employees work for short periods in selected places.
Recommendations and solutions
In 2026, companies using temporary work should treat it as a process, not a one-time reaction to labor shortages. This means the need to organize onboarding, standardize communication and exercise real quality control over recruitment partners. Where these elements are consistent, turnover decreases and temporary work fulfills its stabilizing function.
From the perspective of the market and public institutions, regulatory predictability is of great importance. Because the scale of the share of workers born abroad in the temporary work sector is very large, even small changes in regulations may have wide economic consequences.
CBS data clearly show that temporary work in the Netherlands is to a very large extent based on foreign workers and that this is a long-term trend. In these realities – in 2026 and probably every subsequent year – the key challenge for companies will be retaining employees in the workplace, not merely finding them.
If your company uses temporary work or plans international recruitment, contact Intraservis experts. Our company specializes in recruitment, coordination, legalization and payroll and HR services. Thanks to our support, you will reduce turnover and increase employment predictability.
FAQ – frequently asked questions
Why does temporary work in the Netherlands rely so heavily on workers from abroad?
Because the labor market is structurally tight and local labor supply does not meet demand in sectors such as logistics, agriculture and industry.
Is the high share of foreigners in temporary work a temporary phenomenon?
No. CBS data show a systematic increase in this share since 2010, indicating a permanent structural change.
Which countries do most temporary workers come from?
The largest group consists of people born in Poland, followed by Romania, Ukraine and Bulgaria.
How does a short length of stay affect employment stability?
It increases turnover and the importance of the quality of onboarding and work organization in the initial period of employment.
What is the biggest challenge for companies in 2026?
Maintaining operational stability with high worker mobility and growing organizational complexity.
How can companies reduce turnover?
By providing predictable conditions, consistent onboarding and clear communication, which are more important than the pay rate alone.
