Temporary work and staff leasing

When a company needs labour without hiring directly, Switzerland offers two regulated routes: temporary work (temp staffing through an agency) and staff leasing between companies. They are not the same thing and are not governed by the same rules. Anyone who leases out workers on a professional basis needs a licence; anyone who uses them must know which obligations they answer for. Here is how it works.

The three-party structure

In staff placement the relationship is no longer bilateral. There are three parties:

the lender (the agency or the company that supplies the worker);
the worker, who has a contract with the lender;
the user company, at which the worker provides services.

The key point is that the formal employer remains the lender: it is the lender who pays the salary, remits the social security contributions and takes on the contractual obligations. The user company, however, exercises the power of direction over the day-to-day work. This separation between the formal employer and the party issuing instructions is what distinguishes placement from an ordinary contract for work.

Temp work, occasional leasing and contract for work

It is worth distinguishing three situations:

Temporary work (temp staffing): the agency hires the worker precisely in order to lease them to third parties, often for short assignments. This is the typical activity of staffing agencies.
Occasional staff leasing: a company temporarily lends one of its own employees to another, without making a business of it.
Contract for work / mandate: here there is no staff leasing, because the supplier retains direction over its own workers and is answerable for a result. The classification depends on the substance, not the name of the contract.

Confusing staff leasing with a contract for work is risky: if in practice you are leasing labour under someone else’s direction, the placement rules apply even if the contract says “contract for work”.

The licensing requirement

Anyone who supplies leased staff on a professional basis needs a licence from the competent authority. For cross-border activity (leasing from abroad) the requirements are stricter and in certain cases some forms are not permitted. Occasional, non-professional leasing between companies may not require a licence, but the line must be assessed carefully.

The licence protects the worker: it ensures that behind the agency there is a solid structure, with financial guarantees covering the salaries.

The staff-leasing CLA and the conditions

Placement is subject to precise rules on working conditions. In particular, there is a reference collective labour agreement for the sector and, above all, the principle applies that the leased worker must be granted salary and working conditions at least equal to those customary in the user company and in the branch, in particular where a CLA applies in that sector. Leasing cannot be used to circumvent the minimums of a collective agreement.

Who is answerable for what

Salary and social security contributions (AHV/IV/EO state and disability insurance, ALV unemployment, BVG occupational pension, UVG accident insurance): borne by the lender, the formal employer.
Occupational safety and operating instructions: the user company must ensure safe conditions on site, because it directs the activity.
Compliance with the salary minimums and the applicable CLA: shared responsibility, to be verified before the assignment starts.

The mistakes that cost

Leasing staff without a licence when the activity is professional.
Labelling as a contract for work a relationship that is in fact a lease of labour.
Ignoring the CLA of the sector in which the worker is employed.
Neglecting safety: an accident to the leased worker also involves the user company.

How we help you

The People division of SIH ONE helps you correctly frame leasing and temp-work relationships: classification of the contract, verification of the licensing requirement, salary conditions and allocation of responsibilities between the parties. Talk to our People Desk.