More permanent employment contracts for lecturers, 9.0% salary increase from 1 August and a one-off gross payment of up to €1200.
On 28 June, negotiators representing the employers’ organisation Universities of the Netherlands and the employees’ organisation reached a negotiation settlement on the 2023 Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU). The parties in the collective agreement agreed to a 9.0% salary increase from 1 August, in addition to a one-off gross payment of up to €1200. The universities also agreed that the number of lecturers with a temporary contract (expressed as a percentage of the total academic teaching staff) must be reduced from 15.0% to 13.5% in three years’ time. This will result in approximately 300 new permanent positions.
More permanent employment contracts for lecturers
Based on the results of these negotiations, universities will increase the number of permanent jobs. The parties will do this following a joint study aimed at the contractual position of lecturers. Within three years’ time, the number of lecturers with a temporary contract must be reduced to 13.5% of the total academic teaching staff, which consists of full professors, associate and assistant professors and lecturers. At the moment, 15% of employees in this group have temporary employment contracts. Margot van der Starre, Vice President of Utrecht University and chief negotiator on behalf of UNL: “It is vital that we offer good job prospects to employees. This negotiation settlement represents a step in the right direction. Now, it is down to us to implement the agreements it contains.”
Wage-related agreements
From 1 August, all employees to whom the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities applies will receive a salary increase of 9.0%. This increase will be paid out in September. In addition, all employees will receive a one-time lump sum payment. Because of higher costs due to inflation, the amount of this one-off payment will differ from one pay scale to another. Based on full-time employment, the amount of the one-off payment will be €1200 gross for employees who receive the minimum hourly wage for the university sector, €1000 gross for employees up to and including pay scale 9 and €800 gross for employees in scale 10 or higher.
Term
The collective labour agreement is in effect from 01 April 2023 through 30 June 2024 and applies to over 64,000 employees in the university sector. The text of the negotiation settlement, which includes all adjustments, is available here. The parties to the CAO-NU will present the negotiation settlement to the parties they represent and strive to reach a definitive collective labour agreement by 26 July at the latest.