A bill on the Supervision of Equal Opportunities in Recruitment and Selection was not adopted in the Senate after a majority voted against the bill.

The bill stated that the Dutch Labour Inspectorate would monitor the presence of a recruitment and selection method that creates equal employment opportunities. On 14 January 2021, a reporting obligation for intermediaries for discriminatory requests was added to the bill, meaning that intermediaries were obliged to report clients who persist in a discriminatory request to the labour inspectorate. 

While the bill has been on the agenda of the Senate in recent weeks, some political parties were critical. This was followed by a letter from the minister proposing to postpone enforcement of the bill until 2027. 

According to Flexnieuws, certain parties including the VVD and the BBB, said they withdrew their support in the Senate, explaining that the law imposes too many administrative burdens, while the positive effect is unclear.

Minister Karien van Gennip of Social Affairs and Employment had brought the bill forward and in 2023 it was approved by the House of Representatives.

Van Gennip responded to the news of the Senate rejection in a LinkedIn post. “Extremely painful that an anti-discrimination law is voted down. This is truly a missed opportunity. Everyone deserves an equal opportunity in the search for a job. That starts with objective recruitment and selection. Applicants are widely discriminated against based on their age, name, appearance or gender. Consciously, but also often unconsciously.”

“Despite all the guidance, studies, action plans and covenants, labour market discrimination has not decreased for most groups and has even increased for certain groups. Encouraging employers to take measures on a voluntary basis has insufficient effect. That's why I'm so supportive of this law,” van Gennip added.

“Even now that the law has not been passed, I call on companies to take their responsibility. Get started tackling discrimination,” van Gennip said. “Ensure an objective recruitment and selection procedure. For example, through neutral vacancy texts, selection based on an application form and a structured interview with fixed questions. As minister, I remain committed to an inclusive labour market, including by implementing the labour market discrimination action plan. Because everyone deserves that equal opportunity.”

The NBBU had been in consultation with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment about this bill for four years and has been against the reporting obligation for intermediaries all along.

“Naturally, we believe it is important and necessary that employers' awareness of objective recruitment and selection is increased,” the NBBU stated. The trade organisation said the bill had a “very negative component with the reporting obligation that does not do justice to the services provided by intermediaries, where a place in the labour market is sought for as many people as possible.” It added that it is satisfied with the decision of the Senate to reject the bill.

“Based on the membership requirements, NBBU members must have adequate policies in place, aimed at offering equal opportunities and preventing discriminatory requests and behaviour from clients,” the trade organisation added.

The ABU also worked closely with the Ministry over the bill in the last four years. “The ABU stands for an inclusive labour market and has taken various actions in recent years to reduce employment discrimination. The aim of the bill 'countering labour market discrimination' was therefore emphatically supported by the ABU, as was broadening the obligation to implement an anti-discrimination policy for all employers in the Netherlands.”

However, the ABU added that it expressed strong doubts about the “chosen structure of the bill and whether it would achieve the desired goal.”

It pointed out that the Council of State and the Advisory Board on Regulatory Burden have also previously indicated that there is insufficient substantiation that the requirements set will actually contribute to combating labour market discrimination.

“The bill also contained extensive requirements and high administrative burdens. The ABU was also emphatically not in favour of the reporting obligation for intermediaries,” the ABU added.