The number of jobs in the healthcare sector in the Netherlands is expected to rise to approximately 1.1 million this year, an increase of 1.5% from last year, according to UWV, the employment insurance agency.

With the increase in the number of healthcare jobs, staff shortages are also increasing. According to Mechelien van der Aalst, labour market advisor at UWV, last year, about half of the employers in the healthcare sector had to deal with vacancies that are difficult to fill. Nurses and caregivers for individuals are particularly hard to fill, the UWV says.

The UWV added that the healthcare sector is looking intensively for solutions to the shortages, together with the government and educational institutions.

More than 1 million employees work in the health sector. The sector accounts for 13% of all employees in the Netherlands. More than a third (35%) works in nursing, care and home care and a quarter (27%) work in a hospital, while 16% work in care for the disabled. The rest work in smaller branches.

“This is a big challenge, because the sector will also have to deal with a substantial replacement of staff in addition to job growth,” UWV stated. “For example, 23% of employees in the care sector are older than 55 years.”