Flexi workers are employees who are deployed on a flexible basis for certain tasks within an organisation. This can be advantageous for employers who need extra workers during busy periods but do not want to hire extra staff permanently. In Belgium, it has been possible to use flexi employees since 2015, under certain conditions.

Joint committees eligible in 2023:

• PC 118.03 for bakeries, pastry shops and consumption salons at a pastry shop
• PC 119 of food retailers
• PC 201 for independent retailers
• PC 202 of food retail employees
• PC 202.01 for medium-sized food retail businesses
• NEW: PC 223 for sports
• PC 302 catering industry
• NEW: PC 303.03 for operation of cinema halls
• NEW: PC 304 entertainment business
• PC 311 for large retail stores
• PC 312 for department stores
• PC 314 for hairdressing and beauty care business
• PC 322 for temporary employment, if the user belongs to one of the PCs listed above or the catering industry (PC 302)
• NEW: PC 330 for private health establishments and services
• NEW: the specific joint committee for the events sector to be set up

Conditions for employing flexi workers:

To employ flexi employees, the employer must meet a number of conditions. For instance, a written agreement must be drawn up between the employer and the flexi employee, setting out the tasks, pay and duration of employment.

Flexi employees are entitled to flexi-job status. This means they do not have to pay taxes or social security contributions on the wages they earn from their flexi job.

First of all, you must have worked at least 4/5ths in the past three quarters as a salaried employee at a Belgian company to qualify for a flexi-job. This means that if you want to work as a flexi-jobber in October, November and December 2022, for example, you must have worked at least 4/5ths in January, February and March of 2022. Note that it is not allowed to work as a flexi-jobber with the same employer where you are already permanently employed.

The good news is that the flexi-job statute does not discriminate between different types of workers. Thus, white-collar workers, blue-collar workers and civil servants can all perform flexi-jobs. Teachers with permanent or temporary appointments have also been allowed to perform flexi-jobs throughout the year since 2018.

Pensioners can also work as flexi-jobbers, but there are specific conditions to be met. For more information on this, you can check our blog.

However, there are also restrictions as to who is not allowed to work as a flexi-jobber. For instance, you are not allowed to work as a flexi-jobber if your regular employer is a company abroad. In addition, it is not possible for self-employed people in main occupation to earn extra under flexi-job status, but as a self-employed person in secondary occupation, you can work as a flexi-jobber if you have worked at least 4/5ths in the past three quarters.

If you are unemployed, you cannot work as a flexi-jobber unless you have worked at least 4/5ths in the past nine months. In that case, you may be eligible for a flexi-job, but you will lose (part of) your unemployment benefit. Please note that you are not allowed to combine both benefits and flexi pay on the same day.

Finally, the employer must ensure that the flexi employee has the same rights as other employees, such as rights to holidays, leave and protection against discrimination.

Benefits of using flexi workers:

Using flexi staff offers several advantages for employers. It allows them to quickly deploy extra staff during busy periods, without hiring additional permanent staff. This saves costs and reduces the administrative hassle of hiring additional staff.
 
For flexi employees, a flexi job also offers benefits. It allows them to earn extra on top of their permanent job without paying taxes or social security contributions. Moreover, it allows them to gain work experience in different sectors and perform tasks they might not otherwise be able to do.