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Dutch Jobs: Employee Contracts
By Maartje van Amelsfort, Via Career Coaching
After a job selection procedure the company has decided to make an offer to you - this is wonderful news! The job offer will usually be discussed with you either in person or by telephone. Since the offer contains a lot of information I advise you to ask for a copy of the offer on paper. |
This way you can take it home with you and read it through carefully before making a decision or before getting back to your prospective employer with a counter offer.
There are several ways the employer can take you on. Below are highlighted the main employment contracts available in Netherlands: the fixed term employment contract, the permanent contract and working through an agency on a temporary basis.
Fixed term contract
(in Dutch: contract voor bepaalde tijd)
An employer can decide to
take you on for a temporary period of time, for instance in the case you are replacing
someone on maternity leave or when you are working on a contract with a beginning
and end date. The temporary contract usually includes a probation period of 1
month (in case the contract is for a period of 2 years or less). During this probation
period the contract can be terminated by either party without having to give a
clear reason.
Important: the employer can only give you a maximum of 3 temporary contracts and this period can not exceed 36 months. After this time, the employer is obliged to give you a permanent contract. If you have not been informed when your temporary contract runs out but the employer expects you to continue working, then your contract has automatically been extended under similar conditions as the previous one. This is called 'silent extension' (stilzwijgend verlengen)
Since July 2010 there has been a temporary change to this rule: employers can offer staff younger than 27 years of age 4 temporary contracts instead of 3. This change will be in effect until 1 January 2012.
Permanent
contract (contract voor onbepaalde tijd)
A permanent contract is
an employment contract for an indefinite period of time. This contract can include
a probation period for a maximum of 2 months, unless you have already worked for
this employer before.
Temporary worker (werken als uitzendkracht)
If
you have found employment through a recruitment agency then your employer
may decide to first take you on as a temporary worker, allowing more flexibility
for all parties. In this type of contract are 3 parties involved: the employee,
the hiring company and the recruitment agency. If the recruitment agency you work
for falls under the CAO for temporary workers, then here are some interesting
facts to be aware of.
The CAO is arranged so that temp workers are placed in a phases A, B or C.
Phase A: In the first 78 weeks of working for a recruitment
agency you will be in phase A. This phase allows you a lot of flexibility as the
employee can end the contract with only 1 day's notice and the hiring company
can terminate the contract within a few day's notice, depending on how long the
contract has been in effect.
Phase B: Phase B comes after Phase A and can
last 2 years. In this phase you can receive a maximum of 8 contracts for defined
periods with the hiring company.
Phase C: In Phase C you will get a permanent
contract.
When you work as a temporary worker under the CAO agreement, you do build up certain allowances for (public) holidays, GP visits, illness and holiday pay.
Your recruitment agency will be able to inform you about all the ins and outs of working on a temporary basis.
Employee
Benefits in Netherlands
[Editor Note: employment
law is subject to change, the above article should be used as a guideline only]
Maartje van Amelsfort runs Via Career Coaching based in Netherlands. She can help you with career issues, CVs and cover letters for the Dutch job market and she gives training and workshops to help you achieve your career goals.