On February 21, 2025, the Supreme Court ruled on the classification of employment relationships, specifically in the context of self-employed workers. As early as 2021, the Amsterdam District Court ruled that Uber drivers are employed under an employment contract, meaning that Uber must comply with the Taxi Transport Collective Labour Agreement (CAO). On appeal, the Amsterdam Court of Appeal asked preliminary questions to the Supreme Court regarding the role of the criteria ‘entrepreneurship’ in assessing the employment relationship. The Supreme Court has now provided answers to these questions.
No hierarchy in criteria
In the Deliveroo ruling, the Supreme Court ruled that the assessment of whether an agreement constitutes an employment contract depends on all the circumstances of the case. This includes the nature and duration of the work and the way the work and working hours are determined. In the Uber ruling, the Supreme Court clarified that there is no fixed hierarchy among these criteria. This means that all nine criteria must be equally weighed.
For employers, this means that the classification of an employment relationship can be more complex, as every aspect of the working relationship must be assessed. This can lead to different outcomes, even if two workers perform the same work under the same conditions.
Entrepreneurship: external aspects matter
An important aspect emphasised by the Supreme Court is the entrepreneurship of the self-employed worker. The Supreme Court considers that the entrepreneurship criterium is not given more weight than the other criteria. This means that entrepreneurship can be decisive for the classification of the agreement.
Not only does the general entrepreneurial situation of the worker in the relationship between the workers and the client play a role (internal entrepreneurship), but circumstances outside the relationship are also important (external entrepreneurship).
In terms of external entrepreneurship, one might consider whether the worker is registered with the Chamber of Commerce, the number of clients the worker has outside the specific relationship, or the number of investments the worker makes for its own business.
Retaining self-employed workers? Stimulate entrepreneurship!
Employers are advised to encourage the external entrepreneurship of their self-employed workers. This can be done, for example, by encouraging them to take on assignments from multiple clients and ensuring that the worker clearly profiles themselves as an entrepreneur, for instance, with their own website.
Do you have questions about the classification of employment relationships or would you like to discuss this further? Please contact Gerard Zuidgeest, Rose Horstman, or one of our other employment law specialists.
