Illustration: Studio Geniek Trade unions and universities have settled on a new collective labour agreement (CAO).
Assistant, associate and full professors and support staff who already have a temporary contract will in principle be taken on permanently after one year. This will be the case for new employees after 18 months. The agreement doesn’t cover other teaching staff.
One-off payment
In addition to more job security, staff will get a pay rise. Salaries will go up in two stages: on 1 July by 1.64 per cent and on 1 January 2022 by another 0.36 per cent. Everyone employed by a Dutch university on 1 July 2021 will get a one-off payment of 650 euros (gross, on a full-time basis) by September 2021 at the latest.
The CAO parties think people will be working more from home even after the Covid measures are relaxed. This will be permitted provided the job allows it. Staff will get an internet allowance of 25 euros per month and a home working allowance of 2 euros per day.
Workload
To combat the excessive workload, the aim is to give academic staff a ‘realistic assignment’ with clear agreements about the relative amount of time taken up with teaching, research, economic exploitation and other tasks. The new CAO, which applies from 1 January 2021 to 31 March 2022, still needs to be approved by the trade union and university members.