Cleaners at holiday parks forced to work in terrible conditions, inspectorate says

The conditions under which cleaners at holiday parks work are often impermissible, the Inspectorate for the Ministry of Social Affair and Employment (SZW) said. Cleaners are under a lot of pressure to clean the rooms before new guests arrive, work too many hours and are not paid their full wages.

The inspectorate visited five Dutch holiday parks in Noordwijk, Monnickendam, Arnhem, Chaam and Hellevoetsluis. The violations of worker’s rights that they found are probably only “the tip of the iceberg”, spokesperson of the SZW Inspectorate Paul van der Burg said to De Stentor.

Holiday parks often outsource their cleaning staff from a larger company. The inspectors said they believe the pay employees in four out of five facilities received did not reach the legally required minimum wage. “In one park, there was no clear registration of the working hours. The park can get a fine of up to eight thousand euros for this”, the inspectorate said.

In two parks, the inspectorate encountered foreign workers that did not have an employment permit.

The parks that were checked were not chosen at random, Van der Burg said. “In these parks, there were already issues in the past. Therefore, they were chosen.”

“We believe that these practices are widespread in the sector. The tip of the iceberg? Yes, that is definitely not excluded”, he continued.

In one park, the inspectorate found two cleaners who had falsified identity documents. “These practices we often see in the hospitality industry. That they now also take place in the cleaning sector is new to us”, Van der Burg said. The inspectorate announced they will be looking into the origins of the fake documents.