摘要:The growing importance of nonstandard work arrange-ments during the past two decades has been at the centerof much public debate in the United States. Contingentemployment and employment through temporary workagencies constitute a rapidly growing sector of the U.S.labor market, particularly among disadvantaged work-ers.1The U.S debate has its counterpart in other devel-oped nations, particularly in the European Union (EU),which has often been criticized for the "rigidities" of itslabor market structure. In this article we offer a broadoverview of contingent employment in one EU country,Spain