ZZP case file · pattern evidence · not legal advice
Case: Nationale Politie — Platform Engineer (IDDI private cloud)
1. Anonymized LinkedIn exchange (desk reconstruction)
Source note. The original LinkedIn thread was provided to the zzp2zzp desk. The candidate’s personal identifiers are replaced with Candidate A. The recruiter is labelled Recruiter R on all public pages. Any real name for a formal procedure is kept only in desk-only notes (not on this site). Dialogue below is a faithful reconstruction from the reporter’s written account and the public job ad — not a claim that every word is a court-certified transcript. Original screenshots/export should be kept offline by the reporter for any formal procedure.
Recruiter R · ERG Group
Outreach on LinkedIn for a freelance / ZZP Platform Engineering assignment (Kubernetes, OpenShift, GitLab, VMware, Cloud Foundry). Framed as contractor work for a large Dutch public-sector end client.
Candidate A (anonymized)
Interest as independent contractor. States working full remote from Thailand and asks whether the role can be delivered that way.
Recruiter R · ERG Group
Confirms the commercial path is freelance. After the remote question: the assignment requires one fixed office day per week (Wednesday) — stated as applying to all freelancers and staff on the engagement.
Candidate A (anonymized)
Pushes back on fixed onsite day for a ZZP path; asks who the actual eindklant is and how preferred desks sit in the chain.
Recruiter R · ERG Group
After pushback, names the end client as Nationale Politie (IDDI / private cloud). Preferred-partner desks in the market for this client include frameworks such as Circle 8 and Harvey Nash (parallel preferred suppliers, not a single serial hop).
Candidate A (anonymized)
Declines the hybrid “ZZP + mandatory office Wednesday” construction; logs the pattern for the public ZZP report (companies + pattern; candidate anonymized).
Public job board text (De Transparante Broker) describes the same Politie IDDI Platform Engineer role in Nieuwegein (Utrecht), 36 hours, brokered via one of the opdrachtgever’s brokers, with an explicit note about chain formation (ketenvorming).
2. Pattern analysis (desk)
- Label vs control. The role is sold as freelance / ZZP, while a fixed weekly office day for freelancers and staff alike is a strong indicator of organisational embedding and authority over working time/place — classic Wet DBA / false-self-employment risk factors, not a pure result-based assignment.
- Remote refused as ZZP exception. Full remote (Thailand) was not treated as an independent contractor’s own workplace choice; the bureau applied a one-size office rule to freelancers and employees together.
- Eindklant delayed. End client only named after pushback — common in multi-broker chains; relevant for transparency and ketenaansprakelijkheid awareness, not proof of illegality by itself.
- Parallel preferreds. Circle 8 and Harvey Nash are preferred intermediairs for the same eindklant framework landscape — shown in parallel on the public report diagram, not as ERG → C8 → HN → Politie.
- Public mirror. The DTB listing confirms Politie / Nieuwegein / PE stack and brokered route, independent of the LinkedIn thread.
3. Law & guidance references (Netherlands)
Desk orientation only — not legal advice. For a formal case, use a Dutch employment/tax lawyer and preserve original evidence.
- Civil employment test — BW 7:610 (arbeidsovereenkomst): work, wages, and authority (in dienst). Case law looks at the whole relationship, not the contract label (“ZZP” / “opdracht”).
- Wet DBA (Deregulering Beoordeling Arbeidsrelaties) and Belastingdienst enforcement on false self-employment (schijnzelfstandigheid). Practical criteria still revolve around gezag (authority), inbedding (organisational embedding), and whether the worker truly operates as an independent entrepreneur.
- Belastingdienst — beoordeling arbeidsrelatie / webmodule (official tooling and guidance on when a relationship is employment vs opdracht): belastingdienst.nl — wanneer is sprake van een dienstbetrekking.
- Hoge Raad line of cases on platform / flexible work (e.g. Deliveroo-type reasoning): substance over label; organisational embedding and authority weigh heavily.
- Ketenaansprakelijkheid / inlenersaansprakelijkheid in multi-broker public-sector supply: Belastingdienst — ketenaansprakelijkheid; also WAADI / wetgeving on temporary agency and chain risk when work is on-site under client direction.
- Fixed workplace / schedule for “freelancers + staff” is a high-signal inbedding factor in DBA assessments: same house rules as employees without a matching employment contract or payroll path.
- Public procurement / broker frameworks (preferred partners) do not legalise a false ZZP label; they only explain who may supply. The labour-tax characterisation is separate.
If this pattern were escalated, typical formal channels (depending on facts and standing) include: Belastingdienst tip/handhaving, Inspectie SZW on labour constructions, and civil claims — always with original evidence and counsel.
4. What zzp2zzp publishes vs keeps for case reference
| Element | Public listing | This case file |
|---|---|---|
| Eindklant | Yes | Yes |
| Agency company | Yes (if opted in) | Yes — ERG Group |
| Recruiter personal name | No | No — public case uses “Recruiter R” only; real name stays in desk-only notes if a formal case needs it |
| Candidate identity | No | Anonymized as Candidate A |
| Job URL / pattern | Yes | Yes |
| Legal commentary | Short | This page |
