Page 448 - Invited Paper Session (IPS) - Volume 2

IPS320 Tine Cordes et al.
contractor indicators in order to get more information on those workers who
are captured by each of the indicators.

3. Result
3.1. Test results from the Danish test carried out for ILO
In the test conducted for ILO, definition 1 – dependency of a client –
counted 11,300 persons representing around 5 percent of all self-employed
and 9 percent of the self-employed in the test group (no incorporated
company, no employees). Compared to the remaining part of the test group,
the group meeting definition 1 seemed to have a specific profile around
consultants and highly educated professionals. They showed indications of
being slightly more exposed due to lower turnover and working time, but the
small size of this group made it impossible to draw any conclusions. Definition
2 – the price control approach – comprised 18,900 persons which was 8
percent of all self-employed and 15 percent of the self-employed in the test
group. This group did not show signs of exposure, but rather captured a
certain industry, namely the farming industry, where price setting often is
outside control of the worker. Hence, inability to set prices seems inadequate
by itself, but might rather be an indication of dependency when co-existing
with other dependency-indicators, for example dependency of clients.
However, as can be seen from Figure 1, dependency of clients and the price
control approach did not seem to co-exist very often. Only 2,500 persons,
corresponding to 9 percent of those meeting any of the two criteria, met both
of the two criteria. The 2,500 persons are just 2 percent of all self-employed in
the test group and hence too small a group to base any conclusions on.

Figure 1. Overlap between definitions of Dependent Contractors. Persons

Definition Definition
1 2
2500
8900 16400

As indicated above neither of the two definitions by themselves seemed
to capture people in especially precarious, dependent situations. That might
be because neither of the characteristics involved in the definitions seem to
be unique to dependent contractors, as many ordinary businesses work under
similar conditions without being particularly dependent, let alone in a

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