Substitute teachers in schools in Brabant are increasingly self-employed and teachers on temporary contracts. Hiring a teacher through a recruitment agency costs twice as much, according to SAI calculations. For this reason, secondary schools in our province stopped recruiting teachers through recruitment agencies a year ago.
The headmaster wants nothing more than for all lessons to continue. Even if the teacher is sick, goes on maternity leave, or is absent for a longer period for another reason. It can be very difficult for schools to find a substitute. This is why many schools hire replacement workers through a recruitment agency. There are high costs because agencies ask for a high margin.
“It is disturbing that recruitment agencies are taking advantage of the teacher shortage,” says Martin van den Berg of Christian Huygens College in Eindhoven, who speaks on behalf of all school boards.
In June last year, school boards decided to send a letter to recruitment agencies providing educational staff. They stated in the letter that they will completely stop hiring through these agencies.
“There are eight teachers who moved to us from a temporary recruitment agency.”
Now, almost a year later, van den Berg is taking stock of the situation. He has no idea what financial savings he's made, but eight teachers have already switched from a temporary staffing agency to paid work.
Van den Berg says recruitment agencies are now also noticing that it is not feasible to introduce temporary workers to school boards. “We won't accept them anyway. This increases the risk of the temporary employment agency hiring people.
The goal of school boards is for recruitment agencies to stop hiring in the public sector. Even if it means that sometimes it is difficult for the schools themselves to fill all the gaps.
“You have to keep your back straight. You have to look a little further than usual. Especially if someone suddenly pulls away,” says van den Berg. Schools solve this problem by exchanging teachers and using their own network. “HR people know where to find each other and we have a wide range. Sometimes a retiree will be temporarily hired back and sometimes a self-employed person will come forward.”
The difference between temporary workers and freelancers
A tutor hired by an employment agency is not the same as someone who is self-employed. A self-employed person is someone who works for themselves and therefore does not belong to an agency. A tutor through an employment agency is much more expensive than a self-employed person. According to the Audit Bureau's calculations, the cost of a temporary worker is twice the cost. The costs mainly consist of VAT and the recruitment agency margin.
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