Court ruling: self-employed at a dental chain.

Whether a self-employed arrangement holds up does not depend on what the contract says, but on how the work is done in practice. That already applies today; you do not need to wait for the Self-Employment Act. A ruling by the Zeeland-West-Brabant district court about a self-employed professional at a dental chain shows which facts are decisive.

What the court assessed

ZiPconomy, a Dutch platform on self-employment, described a ruling that comes close to home. On 22 July the Zeeland-West-Brabant district court ruled on the working relationship between a self-employed professional and a dental chain, part of a group that takes over and runs dental practices.

She worked 24 hours a week as data protection officer. She had a company email address and laptop, and a pass that let her into the office. After she terminated the contract, she argued that it had been an employment contract.

Why there was no relationship of authority

The court saw no relationship of authority. What tipped the balance:

• she had two other clients;
• she had drawn up the contracts herself, on her own terms and conditions;
• she was not bound by guidelines;
• she decided for herself where and when she worked.

Her work was not embedded in the organisation. The laptop, the email address and the access pass did not outweigh that.

Apply that to your own locum

A laptop and an access pass are not fatal. The risk lies elsewhere: being a fixed part of the rota, having one client and working as if you were on the payroll.

So above all, check how things actually work. Does your locum work for other clients? Do they decide for themselves when they work? Do the arrangements come from the locum, or do you put your own model contract in front of them? Those are the points a court looks at.

And the Self-Employment Act?

Meanwhile, minister Aartsen is working on the Self-Employment Act. KNMT, the Dutch dental association, expects it to make classifying a working relationship clearer, but not simpler. So: the same questions, asked more sharply.

Honestly: we are not lawyers and this is not legal advice. Get proper advice on this. We are happy to help you think about how to set up the arrangement in practice.

Sources

• ZiPconomy — ruling on the working relationship of a self-employed professional
• MedischOndernemen — KNMT critical of the new Self-Employment Act