GeekWire reports that Jan. 1 marks the end of the first 18-month period since Microsoft implemented an 18-month term limit for contingent workers. “The policy was announced and went into effect on July 1, 2014 and requires that external staff have a break in network and building access after 18 months of such access. We value the partnerships we have with our supplier companies and the external staff they employ and have worked closely with our suppliers since then to plan for these policy changes,” GeekWire reports a Microsoft representative wrote in an email.