If your contract has not been renewed, or you have been dismissed from your job, you are usually entitled to transitional severance pay. If you are eligible for non-statutory subsequent unemployment benefits from the BWNU, you will not be entitled to transitional severance pay in the event your contract is not renewed or terminated for economic reasons. However, if you waive your rights to subsequent BWNU benefits in writing, you will still be entitled to transitional severance pay.
The duration of your employment at Radboud University has no bearing on this matter. The amount of your transitional severance pay will be equivalent to one third of your monthly salary for each year that you worked. The maximum gross amount of compensation is €94,000.00, unless your annual gross salary exceeds this amount. In such a case, the maximum amount of compensation will be equivalent to your annual salary.
When your temporary employment contract ends by operation of law or upon termination of your employment contract, certain costs will be deducted from the transitional severance pay:
- Transition costs during the last year of the employment contract aimed at preventing and/or reducing unemployment
These are costs incurred for activities and efforts upon termination or non-continuation of employment. The costs are intended to help the employee transition to a new job and prevent or reduce unemployment. Examples include costs associated with external retraining, external outplacement, external job interview training, external career counselling and help starting a business. In other words, these costs were specifically incurred to prevent unemployment. - Employability costs during the last five years of the employment contract aimed specifically at career development and improved employability
These are external training courses that aim to help the employee transition to a new position within or outside the university, to which Article 3 of the Radboud University Training Facilities Regulations apply. One example is an accountant who wants to study law or take a coaching skills course, even though his current job does not warrant it. Other examples include external courses in personal profiling, job application skills and/or career orientation. This therefore concerns training costs aimed at securing a future position within or outside Radboud University, not at improving one’s current position.
The transition and/or employability costs incurred by Radboud University may be deducted from the transitional severance pay without your consent, as agreed between the unions and the Local Council in 2015.
The following cannot be deducted
The costs associated with internal training and internal career guidance may not deducted from the transitional severance pay. This was agreed by the trade unions and the Local Council. If these are employability costs (i.e. not transition costs) such as external study costs (retraining and further training), which are related to reintegration due to illness or an internal redeployment, they may not be deducted either.
No or partial transitional severance pay
You are not entitled to transitional severance pay if:
- You and your employer jointly decide to terminate your contract or you personally decide to terminate your contract;
- Radboud University wants to renew your contract of employment but you do not wish to renew it;
- You are guilty of misconduct;
- You have been dismissed in connection with the state pension age (AOW) or retirement age or you have been dismissed after reaching either of these ages;
- You are younger than 18 years of age and you have worked a maximum of 12 working hours per week;
- You signed a new contract with Radboud University before your old contract expired. This new contract will take effect within six months of the termination of the current contract of employment;
- Your contract has been temporarily renewed and this renewal is about to expire. The contract of employment has actually not been terminated;
- Your contract is terminated or not renewed due to economic reasons and you receive non-statutory subsequent unemployment benefits (BNWU);
- Your employment contract is continued or renewed with lower pay but with the same working hours.
You are entitled to partial transitional severance pay if
- Your temporary contract ends by operation of law and is renewed with fewer working hours;
- Your (permanent) contract is terminated and your employment is continued under a new contract with fewer working hours.
In this case, the working hours under your new contract must be significantly and structurally reduced. This means a reduction in working hours of at least 20%, which can be reasonably expected to be permanent. If this is due to economic reasons, you will only be entitled to transitional severance pay if you are not eligible for non-statutory subsequent unemployment benefits (BWNU) or if you waive your right to these benefits in writing. There is no right to transitional severance pay if the contract is extended or continued with lower pay but the old working hours are maintained.
Staff members who use the 30 percent reimbursement ruling
If you are entitled to transitional severance pay and you make use of the 30 percent reimbursement ruling, the amount of your transitional severance pay will be calculated on the basis of your wage after the 30 percent reimbursement ruling has been applied. The 30 percent reimbursement ruling will not apply to the payment of the transitional severance pay. You will need to pay tax on the entire amount of transitional severance pay.