I work as a contractor in The Netherlands and currently wouldn't want it any other way. The payment is indeed good and there's plenty of work available for the

I work as a contractor in The Netherlands and currently wouldn't want it any other way. The payment is indeed good and there's plenty of work available for the (at least somewhat) capable developer, so in fact this puts the developer in a very powerful position. Also, it seems we still have a shortage of qualified IT personnel in the coming decade(s), so there's little reason to stop doing contract work and become a permanent employee.