Self-employed without personnel

Self-employed without personnel are individuals who carry out work on their own account and at their own risk in their own business or practice or work in an independent professional setting without personnel.

The figures are based on the Labour Force Survey (EBB) and refer to people in the age category 15-65 who work at least twelve hours a week, the so-called employed labour force. Only people’s main activity is taken into account. People who are active in a self-employed capacity in their second or third job are not included.

The term ZZP worker was coined by the end of the 20th century, when an increasing number of people left paid employment to become self-employed. They often carried out assignments for their former employees or a relatively small circle of clients and are therefore considered to constitute a separate category of entrepreneurs, the so-called self-employed without personnel.

Formally, ZZP workers do not exist. Sometimes, the term is used to denote freelancers, sometimes it is used to denote all self-employed without personnel. Others regard ZZP workers as a category halfway between entrepreneur and employee (pseudo-self-employed). From a legal point of view, their position differs from employees, but their position in society resembles that of an employee. This article deals with all types of self-employed without personnel.