Working times in the Netherlands

All those working in the Netherlands, including Poles, have a maximum 40-hour working week. This can be reduced to 36 hours. Overtime is usually rewarded with extra pay (150% of the normal hourly rate) or less frequently with extra holidays. According to labour law, the maximum length of a working day, including overtime, is 12 hours, and the length of a work week is 60 hours. Each employee is entitled to a minimum of 11 hours of rest between shifts, while this can be reduced once a week to 8 hours, and once a week the employee must have a minimum of 36 hours of rest between shifts. If you work at night, you cannot work more than 40 hours a week. No exceptions to this rule are possible. After each night shift, a worker is entitled to at least 14 hours of rest, and after three night shifts a minimum of 46 hours of rest. 

Working in the Netherlands – holidays

Most companies or even entire industries make collective agreements with employees that apply to everyone working in a particular company or industry. They determine the number of days of paid holidays that an employee is entitled to. In the Netherlands, the number of days of paid holidays, regardless of the position, varies between 20 to 30 days a year, while this also depends on the age and length of service. The basic rule is the rule of 4 times the number of working days during a week, meaning 4x5=20 days of holiday. If you work for an employer for less than a year, you will receive proportionally fewer days of holidays (a quarter of the standard amount of holidays after three months of work and analogically). If you work part-time, you also are entitled to a correspondingly lower number of holidays (half for 20 hours and analogically). With the consent of your employer, your holidays may be taken earlier in the year, before the entitlement is actually acquired. Every working person in the Netherlands is entitled to paid annual leave. In addition to holidays, you are also entitled to a minimum holiday allowance of 8% of your annual salary, including all bonuses. The amount of holidays is usually stated in the collective agreement applicable to the economic sector in question, and if there is no holiday, it must be stated in the employment contract.

Sickness benefit

Working in the Netherlands also entitles you to a sickness benefit. If you are temporarily unable to work while being employed in the Netherlands due to illness, you are entitled to sickness benefit equal to 70% of your current salary. This benefit is paid by your current employer. It is paid for two years, but after just one year of incapacity for work, the sick employee is entitled to claim a disability pension. This is, however, only available for employees who are under 65 years of age and only in the case of long-term inability to work. After one year of inability to work, the degree of health impairment must still exceed 15%.

Health and safety regulations

Dutch employers are obliged to ensure an appropriate level of health and safety at work for workers. In order to minimize the risk of potential incidents, injuries or illnesses, the employer must provide workers with protective clothing and equipment, such as helmets and goggles. It is required that the employer reports serious accidents to the Labour Inspectorate, where injured workers can also report directly.