For the purposes of identification of threshold for hiring with fixed-term contracts, in the case of companies that started the business activity during the year (start-up), the number of open-ended term employees in force at the time of the first employee hired with fixed-term contract has to be taken into account. This is what the Labour Ministry clarified with letter no. 14974 in response to a question on the different methods of fixed-term employment contracts calculation, in compliance with article 1 of Decree Law no. 34/14, converted into Law no. 78/14.