Temporary employment - the principle of equal treatment
According to the Temporary Employment Act (AÜG), the so-called "principle of equality" applies. This means that the temporary employment agency is obliged to ensure that the temporary staff, is treated in the same way as the permanent staff in the hirer's company.
This equality extends across the entire employment relationship. This includes, for example, the essential working conditions. There must be no difference between the temporary worker and the permanent staff. Wages must also be paid in the same amount and in the same way.
Here too, there has often been a gap between the intended spirit of the regulation and its practical implementation. Temporary workers are often paid less and have to put up with working conditions that do not always correspond to those of permanent employees. As temporary staff, individual temporary workers have little ability to enforce equal treatment with the hiring company.
Objectives of the trade unions
Trade unions have tried to remedy this situation. This occurs through collective labor agreement negotiations and government lobbying efforts. The aim is to achieve various objectives:
- Temporary work may only be used to bridge existing staff shortages and is particularly inadmissible if it is used to circumvent collective agreements.
- Temporary workers must receive the same pay as permanent employees from their first day of work.
- The working conditions must correspond to those of permanent employees from the first day of employment.
- Temporary workers are to receive a 10 % allowance, rewarding their flexibility while also incentivizing employers to offer permanent positions.
- No synchronization of contracts. This means that temporary employment agencies must keep employees on payroll even when they are not subcontracted. This provides workers with the stability they need in their lives.
- The maximum duration of temporary employment must be based on the job, not the person. This prevents another temporary worker simply being hired out after the maximum duration has expired.
- Temporary workers must be taken into account in the labour and co-determination laws like all other employees.
The basic principle is that all temporary workers must have the same rights as all permanent employees. The temporary employment agency is responsible for paying social security contributions and ensuring that the continued payment of wages in the event of illness takes place.
In addition, the statutory protection against dismissal applies.- However, this presents a challenge. Temporary employment contracts typically last only a few months, while statutory dismissal protection only takes effect after 6 months. As a result, temporary workers often do not benefit from this protection at all.
Aside from this, some some collective labor agreements -include regulations on working hours, salaries, and bonuses. In theory, this should allow temporary workers to earn the standard industry wage, meaning their pay depends on the job performed. In reality, however, the proportion of low wages in temporary work is three times higher than among full-time employees.
There are separate employment agencies for specialists. These mainly include specialists for power stations, train drivers and doctors. There are even temporary employment agencies for engineers. As such specialists are in short supply and in high demand, there are very good earning opportunities here. For example, temporary work for engineers is often a good way to earn a little more than the average.
Temporary workand temporary employment both refer to the same process, where a hiring company borrows labor from a leasing company for a limited period. In theory, temporary workers have the same rights as permanent employees regarding both working conditions and pay.
For companies, temporary work provides a way to manage workload peaks effectively. For jobseekers, temporary work offers an opportunity to obtain a permanent position, whether under the staffing agency or in the permanent workforce of the client company.
In reality, however, temporary workers often do not find permanent employment. They also receive a lower wage and their working conditions are often not as good as those of permanent employees.
Skilled labour is an exception. These are in high demand due to the shortage of skilled labour, so that, for example engineers in temporary employment can achieve above-average earnings.