How prices are changing
| Cost driver or rule | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary agency work collective agreement, pay group 1 | €14.96 per hour from 1 January 2026, €15.33 from 1 September 2026 | in force |
| Temporary agency work collective agreement, pay group 1, 2027 | €15.87 per hour from 1 April 2027 | adopted |
| Pay steps agreed by GVP and DGB-Tarifgemeinschaft | +2.99% in January 2026, +2.5% in September 2026, +3.5% in April 2027; can be terminated with effect from 30 September 2027 at the earliest | adopted |
| Statutory minimum wage | €14.60 per hour from 1 January 2027; €13.90 in 2026 | adopted |
| Sector supplements, metal and electrical industry | 15% to 65% on top of the agreed pay, rising with the length of the assignment | in force |
| Equal pay (remuneration) | after 9 months; under a collective agreement on sector supplements, equivalent pay after 15 months at the latest (§ 8(4) AÜG, German Temporary Agency Work Act) | in force |
| Maximum assignment period | 18 consecutive months per agency worker and hirer; earlier assignments count if there are no more than three months between them (§ 1(1b) AÜG) | in force |
| Producer prices, temporary employment agency activities | +2.5% in Q2 2026 compared with the same quarter of the previous year | statistics |
Agreed wages in temporary agency work rise in three steps in 2026 and 2027, by around 9% in total. The lowest pay group is above the 2027 statutory minimum wage. What justifies an increase is therefore the pay step in the pay group of your assignment. From the tenth month of an assignment, equal pay applies to wages. If a collective agreement on sector supplements applies, equivalent pay must be reached after 15 months at the latest.
What makes up the price
In temporary agency work, the rule is: charge rate = hourly wage × mark-up factor. The hourly wage is determined by the pay group in the collective agreement for temporary agency work. On top of this come sector supplements for the hirer’s industry and supplements for night work, shifts or overtime. The factor covers the service provider’s social security contributions, paid leave, public holidays, sick pay, administration, sales, risk and profit. In addition, there are incidental costs, and a fee if you take on the agency worker.
In recruitment, you pay a fee per placement. If it is calculated as a percentage of the annual salary, clarify which salary components count, in which instalments it is due and what applies if the employment ends during the probationary period. Training providers charge per participant, per trainer day or as a flat fee per course, plus travel expenses and cancellation fees.
Which index to use
For the wage share, the temporary agency work collective agreement in the pay group of the assignment; for sector supplements, the supplement agreement of the hirer’s sector. As a statistic, the producer price indices for services of the Statistisches Bundesamt (Destatis, statistic 61311) are suitable, specifically the sub-index for temporary employment agency activities. A price adjustment clause should only adjust the wage-related share. What a fair clause looks like.
Six points where staffing services contracts cost money
- Pay increase applied to the whole charge rate. On 1 April 2027, agreed pay rises by 3.5%. With a fixed factor, the service provider’s administration, sales and profit grow by the same percentage. Yet only social security, paid leave, public holidays and sick pay rise with wages. Agree that only the wage-related part of the charge rate rises with agreed pay.
- Supplements charged twice. Sector, shift or night supplements are included in the charge rate and also appear as a separate item on the invoice. Also check the cap: the collective agreement for the metal and electrical industry limits the sector supplement, up to the 15th month, to the difference from 90% of the hourly pay of comparable permanent employees.
- Transfer fee without a sliding scale. The service provider may agree reasonable compensation for the transfer of an agency worker; a ban on hiring is invalid (§ 9(1) no. 3 AÜG). Agree a sliding scale that decreases with the length of the assignment and lapses after a fixed number of months.
- Minimum assignment hours. Agreed minimum hours per day of assignment or per week are charged even if you send the agency worker home early. Check the timesheets for this and agree on billing by hours actually worked.
- Travel and incidental costs. Travel costs, subsistence allowances and accommodation are added to the charge rate unless the contract excludes them. Specify which incidental costs can be charged and up to what amount, and have them itemised with receipts.
- Framework agreement without performance indicators. Without KPIs, you pay the same rate for a late or unsuitable placement as for a good one. Agree a fill rate, time to fill, free replacement if a worker proves unsuitable, and regular reporting. The same applies to recruitment and training: fees in instalments based on results, a replacement without a new fee if a hire ends during the probationary period, and clear cancellation rules.
Before you agree to an increase
Ask your staffing provider in writing:
- Which pay group and which agreed wage is each charge rate based on?
- What is the mark-up factor, and which part of it rises with agreed pay?
- Which sector supplements do you charge, at which level, and how do you take the cap into account?
- From when does equal pay apply to our assignments, and how do you invoice it?
- What transfer fee, minimum assignment hours and incidental costs do you charge?
For the review, you need: the framework agreement with the price sheet, the assignment contracts showing the pay group, the invoices and timesheets for the last twelve months, and the notice of the increase.
How we renegotiate staffing services
We analyse invoices and timesheets for the last twelve months, check the pay group, factor, supplements and incidental costs for each assignment, and negotiate factors, transfer fee scales and KPIs in the framework agreement. Our senior negotiators negotiate large contracts in person, together with your buyer. We handle the many small contracts in a standardised, software-supported way according to your rules. You sign off every deal. Please clarify individual employment law questions with your legal department or your lawyer.
Frequently asked questions about temporary staffing and personnel services
How much will agreed wages in temporary agency work rise in 2027?
By 3.5% on 1 April 2027. Pay group 1 then rises from €15.33 to €15.87 per hour. Before that, pay rose by 2.99% on 1 January 2026 and by 2.5% on 1 September 2026. The pay agreement between the employers’ association GVP and the DGB-Tarifgemeinschaft union bargaining group can be terminated with effect from 30 September 2027 at the earliest.
The service provider cites the 2027 minimum wage to justify an increase. Is that a valid argument?
Check it. The statutory minimum wage rises to €14.60 per hour on 1 January 2027. Pay group 1 in the temporary agency work collective agreement has been €15.33 since 1 September 2026, which is above that. For assignments under this agreement, the minimum wage alone does not justify an increase.
What do equal pay and the maximum assignment period mean for costs?
As regards pay, the collective agreement may deviate from equal pay during the first nine months of an assignment. It may do so for longer only if equivalent pay is reached after 15 months at the latest, as provided for in the collective agreements on sector supplements (§ 8(4) AÜG, German Temporary Agency Work Act). After that, the agency worker’s pay rises, and the charge rate may rise with it. The same agency worker may be deployed with you for no more than 18 consecutive months, unless a collective agreement in your sector provides otherwise (§ 1(1b) AÜG).
Can the service provider prohibit you from taking on the agency worker, or charge a fee?
A ban on hiring the agency worker after their employment with the service provider has ended is invalid. Reasonable compensation for the placement may be agreed (§ 9(1) no. 3 AÜG). The law does not specify an amount. Negotiate a sliding scale that decreases with the length of the assignment.
Sources
- GVP and DGB-Tarifgemeinschaft: Entgelttarifvertrag Zeitarbeit (pay agreement for temporary agency work) from 1 January 2026, with pay tables up to April 2027
- DGB: Tarifeinigung in der Leiharbeit, mehr Geld in drei Stufen bis 2027 (pay agreement in agency work: more money in three steps until 2027), news item of 15 September 2025
- GVP and IG Metall: Tarifvertrag über Branchenzuschläge für Einsätze in der Metall- und Elektroindustrie (TV BZ ME; collective agreement on sector supplements for assignments in the metal and electrical industry), valid from 1 January 2026
- Fünfte Mindestlohnanpassungsverordnung (Fifth Minimum Wage Adjustment Ordinance)
- § 1 Arbeitnehmerüberlassungsgesetz (German Temporary Agency Work Act)
- § 8 Arbeitnehmerüberlassungsgesetz (German Temporary Agency Work Act)
- § 9 Arbeitnehmerüberlassungsgesetz (German Temporary Agency Work Act)
- Statistisches Bundesamt (Destatis): producer prices for services in Q2 2026, press release of 18 September 2026
