There are three rather common labor contract options. These are:
- Temporary labor contract
- Permanent labor contract
- Contract with an agency

1. Temporary labor contract

A labor contract means that the employee obliges him or herself to work for the employer and the employer obliges him or herself to pay a salary for the work delivered by the employee. A temporary contract has a starting date and an ending date. The contract will end on the agreed date without a dismissal procedure. A different situation occurs if either parties or one of them want to end the contract before the agreed date. In this case, the option for termination of the contract before the final date, need to be part of the contract.

The trial period is a very common part of a (temporary) contract with the employer. A trial period will apply for both parties and needs to be agreed in writing. If the duration of the temporary contract is less than 2 years, the maximum trial period is 1 month. In any way, the legal maximum trial period is never any longer than 2 months.

2. Permanent labor contract

The most important difference between a temporary labor contract and a permanent labor contract is the fact that a permanent labor contract has no ending date (including no indication of any other intention to limit the duration of the contract)

A permanent labor contract can be ended by one of the parties. The legal terms of notice need to be respected. The rules are different for employers and employees. The employee has the legal right to end the contract without a procedure, but he or she has to respect the legal and agreed determination period. The employer needs to apply for a dismissal permit.

3. Contract with an agency

The contract with a temp agency or commercial employment agency differs fundamentally from a contract with the employer as described above. In the temp construction, the temp agency is the legal employer while a company hires the employee from the temp agency. In particular the protection against dismissal during a certain temp period will not be arranged. This on the other hand means that the employee is also free to leave during the same period of time.