Dutch metalworkers reach above-inflation deal

After five months of disputes, unions and employers in the metalworking industry in the Netherlands have reached agreement on a new pay deal. The settlement, which must be endorsed by union members later this month, covers around 160,000 employees, and runs for two years, from 1 December 2020 until 30 November 2022. Pay goes up by 5.3% overall with a 2.3% increase from 1 July 2021 and a 3.0% increase from 1 February 2022. In addition, those in post on 1 December 2020 get a back-dated payment, equivalent to 2.3% over seven months. This year’s pay increase is higher than the current level of inflation – 1.4% in July.

As well as the pay increases, the employers have agreed that 2,400 temporary workers will be taken on as permanent employees during the course of the agreement and that individuals doing arduous work can retire three years earlier than normal from 1 January 2022. The two sides are also setting up a joint working group to look at workloads and investigate the possibility of moving to a four-day working week