A fixed-term contract is a contractual relationship between an employee and an employer that lasts for a specified period that is determined in advance. These contracts are usually regulated by countries' labor laws, to ensure that employers still fulfill basic labour rights regardless of a contract's form, particularly unjust dismissal. Generally, fixed-term contracts will automatically be deemed to have created a permanent contract, subject to the employer's right to terminate employment on reasonable notice for a good reason. In the European Union the incidence of fixed-term contracts ranges from 6% in the UK to 23% in Spain, with Germany, Italy and France between 13% and 16%.[1]
By country
editDue to the potential job insecurity that multiple fixed-term contracts may cause, employment laws in many countries limit the circumstances and the way these contracts may be used. In countries where labour law is more restrictive (compensation/indemnity for dismissal), the differentiation between fixed-term and permanent contracts tends to be clearly set out in law. Where employment legislation is less protective for the employee there tends to be a lesser degree of differentiation between fixed and permanent contracts.
Belgium
editThere are two possibilities to contract successive fixed-term contracts:
- Successive employment contracts with a maximum term of two years: A maximum of four successive fixed-term employment contracts, where the minimum duration of each contract is three months and the total duration of all the successive contracts is not longer than two years.
- Successive employment contracts with a maximum term of three years: With the prior authorisation of the Belgian Federal Public Service Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue, successive fixed-term contracts can be concluded with a minimum duration of six months if the total duration of all the successive contracts do not exceed three years.[2]
France
editThe maximum term is twenty four months and may be extended once only.[3]
Germany
editFixed-term contracts may not be extended more than three times with a maximum total period of two years.[4]
India
editIndia allows fixed term employment since 2015. Fixed-term employees are entitled to wage and benefits on par with permanent employees.[5]
Luxembourg
editIn Luxembourg, the standard maximum length of a contrat de travail à durée déterminée (CDD) is twenty-four months, with up to two renewals allowed. Researchers and students can employed for a maximum of sixty months on a CDD, with no restriction as to the number of renewals allowed. A waiting period of a minimum of one-third of the length of the contract is required for a CDD to be considered a new contract (and not a renewal) and to restart the maximum allowed duration of employment.[6]
Saudi Arabia
editAlthough both indefinite and fixed-term contracts exist in the country, foreign workers in Saudi Arabia must have a fixed-term contract; if the contract does not specify an end date, then the term automatically ends when the employee's work permit expires.[7]
United Kingdom
editAny employee on a fixed-term contract for four or more years will automatically become a permanent employee, unless the employer can show there is a good business reason not to do so.[8]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Eurostat - Tables, Graphs and Maps Interface (TGM) table". europa.eu.
- ^ "Contrat de travail conclu pour une durée déterminée (CDD)". emploi.belgique.be.
- ^ "Conditions de renouvellement d'un contrat de travail à durée déterminée (CDD)". service-public.fr. Archived from the original on 2021-09-07. Retrieved 2014-05-18.
- ^ "Befristeter Arbeitsvertrag oder Zeitvertrag". ArbeitsRatgeber. 6 October 2013.
- ^ "The Good and Bad Side of 'fixed-term Employment' Amendment". 21 March 2018.
- ^ "Fixed-term employment contracts". 11 May 2021.
- ^ Alsharif, Dimah Talal (2 May 2018). "Trouble with your work contract? Here's what you need to know". Arab News. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
- ^ "Fixed-term employment contracts". www.gov.uk.