> What are the problems in employing people as contractors rather than employees?
No problems for me, but there would be huge problems for the new employee. In the Netherlands, it's illegal, as the contractor has to have >= 3 clients. It also causes problems with access to social services and healthcare.
It looks like, for the Netherlands at least, that there are some local providers that handle this. One I found (and will probably go with) is Orange Tax — www.orangetax.com