Health, Economic Policy, Netherlands

The FNV and NU’91 trade unions have negotiated a new collective agreement covering the 80,000 employees of the University Medical Centres. Salaries will increase by 4% on 1 May 2024, (maximum of €246.24, gross/full-time basis) and on 1 July 2025, by 3% (maximum of €192.06, gross/full-time basis). If inflation in 2025 is significantly higher than 3%, then an additional agreement could be negotiated. There will be a travel allowance of 0.18 per kilometre and the working from home allowance will increase to €2.35 per day and will be automatically adjusted each year to the maximum tax allowance

The FNV and NU’91 trade unions have concluded a new 12-month agreement covering around 7800 employees in the sector but with an effective start date of 1 June 2023. The increase comes in three stages with 3.5% backdated to 1 January and then 3.5% on 1 April and 3% on 1 June. The FNV says that the 10% means that maternity workers are catching up with other groups in the health sector but stressed that there remained a major problem about the unpredictability of work. This is still being discussed with the employers and the unions want action to address the high level of absenteeism due to

Trade unions representing midwives, including the FNV and NU'91, say they are disappointed by the response of the health minister to the urgent letter sent to the minister by the five unions at the end of December. With 1000 vacancies across the country the unions are extremely worried about the capacity of the service to guarantee care for pregnant mothers. The extra work taken on by midwives to cover for the vacant positions means many are dealing with heavy workloads and have had to cutback on holidays. The unions estimate that midwives’ pay is on average 10% below salaries in eldercare. A

Trade unions in municipalities, including the FNV, have negotiated 15-month agreement that runs to 31 March 2025 and provides a 6% pay increase. There will be a 4.75% increase on 1 January followed by 1.25% on 1 October. While most lower paid employees are on €16 or above a few are still on the national minimum wage of €15.92. The FNV is committed to secure a higher minimum wage in local government. The agreement includes an additional day of non-statutory leave as of 1 January 2025, taking the total to eight. While the early retirement scheme is made more accessible, the union is disappointed

The FNV and other trade unions have suspended their industrial action and mobilisations in the youth care sector pending negotiations on the basis of an improved pay offer from the employers. This involves a pay increase of 8% on 1 January 2024 and 1.25% on 1 July 2024 with an additional lump sum of €400. There would then be a 3% increase for 2025 and inflation compensation to a maximum of 2.25%, if inflation is higher than 3%. The minimum wage will rise to €15 per hour and the working-from-home allowance to €3 per day. This compares to the previous offer of a 6.7% increase and additional 2%

The VNG local government employers’ organisation has come up with an offer of a 4% pay rise for the year 2024. The FNV trade union has acknowledged this as an opening to proper negotiations, it says it falls some way short of its main demand for an 8% rise pay increase on top of a flat-rate €100 increase. The VNG is also yet to respond on a number of other issues including leave and early retirement. The negotiations resume on 30 October, when the FNV will also raise concerns around workloads. Meanwhile, the University Medical Centres employer organisation has yet to come up with a specific

Members of the FNV trade union in energy supply voted 83% in favour of a new 18-month collective agreement that is backdated to 1 July 2023. Wages will increase by 6% on 1 October and full-time workers will also get a lump-sum payment of €1000 gross. There will be a further pay rise of 2% on 1 January 2024, which will see the introduction of a minimum hourly wage of €15 gross for skilled employees (including the 2% increase). There will be another 2% increase on 1 July 2024. Meanwhile, the FNV has negotiated a new two-year agreement for 7000 ambulance staff that will run until 31 January 2025

The FNV trade union is preparing for negotiations covering maternity workers that are set to begin at the end of September. The union is concerned that salaries in maternity care have been the lowest in the care sector for years and higher pay is important to attract more workers to address staffing shortages. The FNV is aiming for a main increase of 14.3%, based on the inflation rate of October 2022. It argues that pay for maternity nurses has been eroded by inflation with only a 3% wage increase in 2022 and no pay rise at all in 2021. The union is looking to new research to be published

The collective agreement covering 80000 employees in University Medical Centres is due to expire at the end of the year and the FNV trade union has begun consulting workers over the main demands that should feature in the upcoming negotiations. The union is particularly concerned that action is needed to improve conditions for permanent employees and tackle the impact of poor rosters and excessive workloads that lead to absenteeism and high turnover of staff. A central demand will be for pay to increase in line with inflation in January 2024 with an additional payment of €100 a month. The

The 200000 workers covered by the disability care collective agreement are getting a phased pay increase of 10% on top of the 3.2% already paid in May this year, negotiated by the FNV and NU’91 trade unions. There will be two increases of 3% on 1 September and 1 December (both with a €80 minimum) and in 2024, there will be two further increases of 2% in June and December (both with a minimum of €55). The travel allowance will be doubled from 8 cents to 16 cents per kilometer. Meanwhile, after difficult negotiations, unions at the Sanguin blood services non-profit company, including FNV, have

The FNV trade union and the RTL Nieuws broadcaster have published a survey covering nearly 2300 workers in nursing and home care that shows that work is becoming increasingly difficult and has to be done with fewer and fewer colleagues. The union argues that this poses a threat to the quality of care as well as the safety of employees and those they care for. The FNV says that as a result of government policy people are receiving care at home for longer and so by the time they move to a care home they often need more complex care. Waiting lists for care home places have risen from 8000 in 2008

The FNV is seeking pay rises for workers in both the mental health and eldercare sectors with actions planned for this month. In eldercare, on 12 May, the union has organised an online “talk show” bringing together politicians, employers and workers to discuss how to make the sector more attractive. On 25 May, the FNV will present its pay demands to the employers, Actiz and Zorghuisnl, as part of a national action in Utrecht. Meanwhile, in the mental health sector the union, along with NU’91, is pushing for a pay offer to cover the surge in inflation, although the current collective agreement

Health sector trade unions, including the FNV and NU’91 have secured an improved pay offer from hospital employers following the strike action earlier this month and the threat of further action in April. A general pay rise of 5% will be backdated to 1 February and there will be a further 5% increase on 1 December, with a minimum increase of €150 per month. On 1 June 2024, wages in the lowest salary scales will increase by 5%, with a floor of €150. Workers on higher salary scales will get an additional 2%, plus €180. There is the possibility to re-open negotiations depending on inflation

The FNV and NU’91 unions have called a national day of industrial action across the hospital sector on 16 March when only a Sunday service will be provided. The unions are demanding a 10% pay increase in response to the surge in the cost of living and as one measure to help deal with the staffing crisis. The NU’91 also is also organising a broader campaign on the crisis in care with a demonstration in Utrecht on 9 March where it encouraged everyone to wear black and then to back its “every Tuesday in black” campaign.