In the forthcoming collective bargaining round, hospital employers in the Netherlands will seek to establish exceptions to the present 36-hour working week for certain personnel. The acting chair of the association of hospital administrators (NVZ) believes that the 36-hour working week has been counterproductive, resulting in increased working pressure, problems in filling vacancies and freezes in hospital admissions. Hospitals want employees in sectors affected by chronic shortages to be allowed to work 38 or 40 hours a week. This was the first objective announced in November 1998 when the hospital decided to reach an independent collective agreement outside the general care sector agreement. The proposed new agreement must be implemented by April 1999.
In the forthcoming collective bargaining round, Dutch hospital employers will seek to establish exceptions to the current 36-hour working week for certain staff. This was the first objective announced in November 1998 when the hospitals decided to depart from the wide-ranging collective agreement that covers the entire care sector.
In the forthcoming collective bargaining round, hospital employers in the Netherlands will seek to establish exceptions to the present 36-hour working week for certain personnel. The acting chair of the association of hospital administrators (NVZ) believes that the 36-hour working week has been counterproductive, resulting in increased working pressure, problems in filling vacancies and freezes in hospital admissions. Hospitals want employees in sectors affected by chronic shortages to be allowed to work 38 or 40 hours a week. This was the first objective announced in November 1998 when the hospital decided to reach an independent collective agreement outside the general care sector agreement. The proposed new agreement must be implemented by April 1999.
AbvaKabo, the largest trade union in the care sector, is mainly positive about the 36-hour working week and would not consider its abolition, as it is not aware of any negative experiences with its operation. Any problems that may exist must be solved, the union believes; however, abolishing the 36-hour working week is not the answer. According to the current collective agreement, exceptions to the regular working week can be made following consultation with the works council, but so far the hospitals have seldom made use of this option.
A separate collective agreement for hospitals, which employ nearly half the country's 340,000 care sector workers, is no longer a goal, but a reality (NL9811105F). While the healthcare employers' umbrella organisation, the Dutch Federation of Employers in the Healthcare Sector (Nederlandse Zorgfederatie, NZF), and the unions alike regret the hospitals' decision, they have to respect it. NZF and the unions fear labour cost competition amongst the four areas of the care sector - hospitals, nursing homes, mental healthcare and care for people with disabilities. Furthermore, they perceive a threat to the cohesion of primary and secondary employment conditions. NVZ, representing the hospital administrators, does not anticipate these negative effects, and plans a transition period of several years to shift from the general care sector agreement to its own agreement. Furthermore, NVZ would like to address salaries and pension schemes along with nursing homes. The NVZ emphatically states that no competition over employment conditions is intended nor would employers be served by any. Their interest lies in adjusting employment conditions to the nature of hospital work. Following the hospitals' example, nursing homes have now announced that they too will withdraw from the care sector agreement and negotiate their own deal directly with the relevant minister and the unions.
Il-Eurofound jirrakkomanda li din il-pubblikazzjoni tiġi kkwotata kif ġej.
Eurofound (1998), Hospitals seek to extend working week, article.
