Temporary, outsourced workers to benefit from equal pay and conditions from 2025

Temping agency and outsourced workers will start to benefit from equal pay and work conditions as the workers of the employer where they are assigned.

Starting from 1 January 2025, temporary and outsourced workers will be granted the same rights as workers in the company they are being outsourced to.

Outsourced workers respond to an outsourcing company, while temporary workers respond to the client company of their temping agency. Under the new regulations, the two groups of workers will be granted the same rights.

The new regulations make no distinction between temporary workers on indefinite contracts and those with definite contracts, as they will all be entitled to the same pay as the employees engaged by the temping agency’s client company.

This means that if a temporary worker is employed as a receptionist, they are entitled to the same pay and working conditions offered by the company making use of the temping agency.

Furthermore, temporary and outsourced workers will now benefit from the same working conditions and pay from the first day of assignment, and will not have to wait four weeks, as the law currently stands. 

It was explained that if a temporary or outsourced worker’s conditions are not as favourable as the client company, they will automatically be entitled to the benefits and conditions as the client company. If they do not benefit from this, the workers are entitled to make their case in front of the industrial tribunal.

If the workers are assigned to a company with less favourable conditions, the outsourced or temporary workers will still benefit from the most favourable conditions. The regulations will also include public holidays and annual leave entitlements among the new definitions.

Following the briefing, Prime Minister Robert Abela described the change in regulations as part of a number of initiatives enacted by government which give workers more rights and fairer working conditions, as he reminded that this change was part of Labour's 2022 electoral manifesto. 

Meanwhile, parliamentary secretary for social dialogue, Andy Ellul noted that government cannot be passive to the changing employment landscape, describing the initiative as a way to keep up to date with modern employment realities.