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Netherlands – Trade association agrees collective agreement for temporary workers

24 April 2014

The Dutch Association of Mediation and Employment Agencies (NBBU) has reached an agreement with the National Employee Interest Association (LBV) for a new collective agreement for temporary workers (Uitzendkrachten), reports flexnieuws.nl.

Bart-Joroen Croll, chief negotiator for NBBU, commented: “In our agreement, we have laid the foundation for a modern collective agreement with a good balance of the interests of both employers and employees.”

The collective agreement will be effective from 1 June 2014 and run for five years.

Under the current NBBU system, temporary workers transition through three phases before entering a fourth phase when they become temporary agency workers.

  • In phase one, there is little protection for temporary agency workers and user companies may terminate the assignment at any time. In order to progress into phase 2, temporary workers must work for a total of 26 weeks on an unlimited number of contracts.
  • In phase two, temporary workers must work for a total of 104 weeks on an unlimited number of contracts before they are able to progress to phase three.
  • Phase three lasts for 52 weeks, and temporary workers are able to work a maximum of four temporary work assignments during the period before they can transition to the final phase.
  • In the fourth phase, temporary agency workers are employed by a temporary work agency under indefinite duration contracts.   

The changes made in the collective agreement have been prompted by forthcoming legislative changes in the Netherlands that will come into effect on 1 July 2014.

Phase one remains unchanged by the new agreement; temporary workers will continue to work for a total of 26 weeks on an unlimited number of contracts.

The new collective agreement dictates that the total number of hours worked by temporary workers in both phase one and phase two cannot exceed 78 weeks in total, effective from 1 January 2016. As the new agreement will come into effect on 1 June 2014, it supersedes the new legislation meaning that the 78 week restriction will not come into force until 1 January 2016. Phases one and two will remain separate, and phase two will be truncated from 104 weeks to 52 weeks in 2016.

The other change to phase two involved the use of zero-hours contracts. At present temporary workers in phases one and two can be put on zero-hours contracts. From 1 July 2015, it will not be possible to give zero-hours contracts to temporary workers in phase two. All workers in phase two must be paid for a minimum of three hours per contract, regardless of the length of contract and even if now hours are actually worked.   

In phase three, temporary workers will have to work for either four years or a minimum of six contracts, instead of one year and four contracts, before they can progress to phase four, effective from 1 July 2015.

The new collective agreement has not been accepted by the Federation of Dutch Labour Movements (FNV), the Christian Trade Union Federation (CNV), and trade union Unie.

Mr Croll added: “There are exceptions for the new agreement in the staffing industry. The unions wanted exceptions, such as not recognising the 78 week contract limit. They made unreasonable demands. [But] we have now come to a balance collective agreement. The new agreement includes a longer period for fixed term contracts, but at the same time we have restricted the use of zero-hours contracts.”

NBBU will continue to work with FNV, CNV, and Unie within the staffing industry, Mr Croll added, saying: “We remain committed to a bona fide and qualitative industry and enjoy working with all parties.