The temporary employment sector in the Netherlands continued to expand in 2017. The average number of hours worked by temps was 6% higher than in 2016, while turnover increased by 7% over the period, sector organisation ABU reported on Wednesday.

ABU said substantially more temporary workers were employed in the industrial sector in 2017 where the number of hours worked rose 11% and revenues increased by 14% over 2016.

The sector organisation said this confirms that industrial companies are prepared to pay more for the appropriate flex-worker, underlining the scarcity of qualified industrial staff.

Randstad, by far the biggest temps group in the Netherlands and one of the biggest in the world, has identified the construction, IT and technical sectors as those now most needing specialised temps help.