Non-regular employment in the Netherlands

Non-regular employment has achieved an important position in the Netherlands. Part-timers nowadays account for over 50 per cent of total employment. At the same time, a process of ‘regularisation’ has resulted in an important equality with full-time employment in terms of wages, employment stability, social security, etc. Part-time employment therefore tends to be considered no longer ‘atypical’ or ‘non-regular’. In addition, there have been important developments in the legislation of flexible employment, in particular through the Flexibility and Security Act from 1999 which aims to strike a balance between the needs for flexibility and security. All these developments have drawn extensive praise in recent years. The rise in part-time employment has been considered an integral part of the strong economic performance of the Dutch ‘poldermodel’ and the regulation of flexible employment a major example of ‘Flexicurity’. This report discusses these developments by underlining the importance of various national agreements between employers and employees that have shaped industrial relations in recent decades. In addition, it discusses the current characteristics of part-time and flexible employment. The data illustrate that important challenges and concerns remain. This, for example, concerns the low participation of women in the labour market when expressed in terms of working hours and the rise in flexible employment in recent years. The latter may no longer be in accordance with the objectives of the Flexibility and Security Act and deserves particular attention.