Houtman, Irene
Netherlands: Helping employees with mental health issues get back to work
16 juli 2015
Employees with mental health problems are more likely to succeed in returning to work if they have active support from a supervisor, and if they can access cognitive behavioural therapy. New measures supporting such workers in the Netherlands are promising, but there needs to be an overall growth in jobs for these to be effective.
Netherlands: Steady decline in job autonomy
06 maj 2015
Job autonomy – how far employees can regulate their own work – has been declining for decades in much of Europe. However, Dutch employees began to report a steady fall only in 2008. The Netherlands Working Conditions Survey (NWCS) indicates autonomy has shrunk most in the business services sector, among young employees and those with temporary contracts.
Health matters in hiring and retaining personnel
19 februar 2014
In common with the rest of Europe, the workforce in the Netherlands is
ageing. The formal retirement age in the Netherlands recently increased from
65 to 67. Surveys based on the earlier retirement age showed that an
increasing percentage of employees were willing to work until the official
retirement age and this proportion has been increasing since employees were
first asked about their retirement preferences in 2005.
Netherlands: Stable working conditions with decline in work disability
20 marts 2012
The quality of work in the Netherlands remains quite stable, with a small
increase in exposure to time pressure. Despite the stable working conditions,
fewer workers feel that protective measures are needed. Changes in work
disability regulations have led to far fewer workers dropping out of
employment due to disability. However, it appears that some employees with
health issues voluntarily choose to leave the workforce.
Factors influencing early exit from the labour market
22 september 2011
In the Netherlands, many employees leave the workforce well before the
official retirement age of 65, but the issue of continuing to work until and
beyond 65 is increasingly the focus of debate.
Work-related stress (report)
27 april 2010
Changes in the content and organisation of work in recent decades have resulted in an intensification of work, which is commonly regarded as a cause of stress. This report presents trends in the risks and consequences of work-related stress, and identifies how these can be prevented. The analysis is based on national surveys and research information available in the EU, as well as recent research findings.
A sector perspective on working conditions
18 februar 2009
Secondary statistical analyses on the fourth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) have been commissioned with the aim of providing a sector perspective of working conditions. This report aims to: identify sectoral profiles on working conditions for the EWCS data collected in 2005 at NACE 1 and 2-digit level; present trends based on a comparison with previous versions of the EWCS (1995, 2000 and 2001–2002) at sectoral level (in 1990–1991, a different sectoral classification was used, which makes trend analysis including this first year of the survey impossible); and identify differences between country clusters in sectoral profiles.
Working conditions remain stable in the Netherlands
22 april 2008
The quality of work as well as health complaints in the Netherlands appear to be relatively stable. Pace of work seems to be on the increase again and more people are working in excess of their contractual hours. Notwithstanding changes in disability legislation, psychological disorders remain a factor in dropping out of employment. Overall, absenteeism has been decreasing recently although work-related illnesses tend to result in longer spells of absence.
Information and preventive measures can reduce absenteeism during pregnancy
10 februar 2008
Working during pregnancy may expose women to certain risk factors, such as
heavy physical work, exposure to chemicals and high work pressure, which
could negatively influence their health and that of their unborn child.
Furthermore, due to their different body size and changing functional
capacities, work may impose a relatively high demand on pregnant women. As a
result, pregnant women may be at risk of developing more health problems and
be more often absent from work than working women who are not pregnant.
Therefore, a number of safety rules and regulations have been implemented in
the Netherlands, all of which are designed to protect pregnant as well as
breastfeeding women and their children, and prevent any work absenteeism in
relation to the pregnancy. However, despite these regulations, pregnant women
in the Netherlands still show a higher rate of absenteeism compared with
non-pregnant working women.
Working conditions remain stable in the Netherlands
22 januar 2008
Despite significant changes in the national questionnaires on work and
health, the quality of work as well as health complaints in the Netherlands
appear to be relatively stable. Pace of work seems to be on the increase
again and more people are working in excess of their contractual hours.
Notwithstanding changes in disability legislation, psychological disorders
remain a factor in dropping out of employment. Overall, absenteeism has been
decreasing recently although work-related illnesses tend to result in longer
spells of absence.