SERVICES
Temporary Agency Work
Agency Work Beyond 24 Months: Direct Employment Relationship with the End-User Arises
Milan Tribunal
A worker who had been employed for years at the same warehouse under agency work contracts brought proceedings to obtain recognition of a direct employment relationship with the end-user company, together with correct job classification and compensation. The worker had performed work continuously at the same company for more than four years — first under fixed-term contracts and then under an open-ended contract with the agency — while continuing to carry out assignments at the same end-user. The company raised preliminary objections, including time-bar and lack of legal interest. The Tribunal dismissed these objections, holding that an open-ended contract with the agency does not preclude the worker’s interest in obtaining a direct employment relationship with the end-user. On the merits, the Judge reaffirmed that exceeding the 24-month limit for assignments at the same end-user renders the fixed-term contracts null and void and gives rise to an open-ended employment relationship directly with the end-user company. Even in open-ended agency work, the actual manner and duration of assignments are relevant: where the placement loses its temporary character, the instrument is being used improperly. Having established that the time limit had been exceeded, the Tribunal declared the existence of a direct employment relationship with the company from the twenty-fourth month onwards and ordered the employer to pay compensation equal to 6 monthly salaries of the last pay used for severance pay (TFR) purposes.