The energy sector is rapidly expanding its permanent workforce, while the role of flexible professionals is shifting.

The share of freelancers and agency professionals in the energy and utilities sector has fallen from a peak of nearly 25% in 2023 and 2024 to 11% today. However, this is not due to a decline in work for these professionals. In fact, the number of assignments for freelancers and agency professionals is increasing slightly. The main explanation is the strong growth in the number of permanent employees in recent years. As a result, freelancers and agency professionals now account for a smaller proportion of the total workforce. These findings come from the latest edition of the Talent Monitor, jointly published by HR tech service provider HeadFirst and labour market data specialist Intelligence Group.

Growth in permanent employment reduces the share of external professionals

This sets the energy sector apart from the broader trend, in which companies are hiring fewer external professionals. In the energy and utilities sector, demand for freelancers and agency professionals remains stable, with the number of assignments actually increasing slightly. At the same time, their share of the total workforce fell by more than half, from nearly 25% to 11%. The main explanation is the significant growth in permanent employment over recent years. Shorter assignment durations may also contribute to this trend.

Lowest hourly rate of all sectors surveyed

The average hourly rate in the energy and utilities sector is just over €97, making it the lowest of the five sectors surveyed. However, there are clear differences between occupational groups. Managers in business and administrative services earn an average of €110.49 per hour, database designers and administrators €109.24, and business consultants and management analysts €108.17. Software developers, at €97.80 per hour, are close to the sector average. By comparison, the central government sector, which offers the highest rates in the study, has an average hourly rate of more than €111.

Energy sector attractive to freelancers considering permanent employment

The growth in permanent employment aligns with what professionals themselves report. Among freelancers in the energy and utilities sector, 23% are open to moving into permanent employment. This is a higher proportion than in any other sector surveyed.

Freelancers considering a move to another sector are primarily looking at the chemical industry, ICT and consultancy. These sectors offer strong demand for similar technical and specialist expertise. The challenge for the coming years will therefore be to attract talent while retaining the specialist knowledge needed to keep the energy transition moving forward.

Bastiaan Moll, Energy Sector Director at HeadFirst, sees what this means in practice among clients in the sector:

“Energy companies are working on challenges measured in years, not months. From grid expansion to sustainability initiatives, these projects require both knowledge that remains within the organisation and expertise that can be brought in at exactly the right moment. Permanent teams have grown rapidly in recent years, and the focus is now on retaining and strengthening them. At the same time, uncertainty surrounding the regulations for self-employed professionals is driving increased demand for agency professionals employed on permanent contracts. As a result, external professionals are increasingly being deployed to address specialist challenges that require speed, experience and expertise.”

About the research

The Talent Monitor is based on labour market data from Intelligence Group, combined with hiring data from HeadFirst (powered by Vertage). The research is supplemented by the International Talent Acquisition Monitor (ITAM), a quarterly survey of an average of 4,000 people in the Netherlands and 30,000 across Europe, as well as data from Statistics Netherlands (CBS) and other labour market sources.