NS workers reject contract deal with 6.6% pay raise; Dutch rail strike not yet planned

The collective bargaining agreement between the Dutch national railway, NS, and leaders from the FNV labor union was shot down by union members, the FNV announced on Friday. Although a slim majority of union members voted in favor of the deal, they were not particularly satisfied with the terms, the FNV said. Union representative Henri Janssen told ANP that NS employees may consider carrying out labor actions again, but there are no plans in place for a strike.

Had the deal been approved, the rail workers would have received an average pay raise of 6.6 percent, with more commitments for permanent jobs, on-call bonuses, and the right for older workers to refuse late night and overnight shifts. The labor union invited the NS to resume talks on the collective bargaining deal.

"The members have now spoken: only 51% of members voted in favor, 47% voted against the negotiation result and 2% indicated that they would abstain," the FNV announced on Friday. "The dissatisfaction among our members is enormous. Not only among those who voted against, but also many members who voted in favor, indicate that they are also disappointed with the negotiation result," the union stated. "Many members find the wage increase in the negotiation result insufficient compared to various other sectors and companies, including in public transport. This will by no means repair the inflation gap that has arisen."

When the two sides showed signs of reaching a deal in December, the threat of rail strikes was taken off the table. The prospective deal was reached on January 9 on the contract, which would have had a retroactive start date of January 1, and was set to continue through the end of February 2025. The FNV had demanded a 10 percent wage increase, while the NS initially said they would offer no more than 4 percent. FNV also wanted automatic wage increases in the future linked to inflation.

The two sides were in a somewhat difficult position from the start. Aside from the wide gap between their expectations, they had a fairly dragged-out, acrimonious negotiation the year prior. The contract they finalized in October 2022 happened after NS staff members went on an extended national strike, and multiple regional strikes. When the dust settled, the union secured a pay increase of over 9 percent for a contract that took retroactive effect from July 2022 through the end of 2023.

When talks over the 2024 seemed at an impasse in December, the possibility of another strike emerged. That led to the agreement in January, where all workers were guaranteed a 4 percent raise, with a minimum amount of 240 euros per month guaranteed. On top of that, on-call shift workers would receive an extra 20 percent, and the two sides agreed to create a list of jobs categorized as "difficult" which would then be entitled to more benefits. Temporary workers were to be awarded a permanent contract after 18 months of service, and workers over the age of 63 would win the right to opt out of late night and overnight shifts before the 2027 timetable is implemented.

When FNV presented the terms of the deal to its membership on Wednesday, the union said it was presented impartially, "because we were and are of the opinion that nothing more could be achieved by talking." The union said the contract on the table contained many positive attributes, but also it was clear where they had compromised.

Aside from complaints about increased compensation amid high inflation levels, the union said, "Many members also find the generic scheme to be exempt from night shifts at a certain age insufficient and unfair." Additionally, they also wanted more guarantees that income levels would remain stable for workers when their schedules and tasks are modified in such a way that their take-home pay is reduced. "NS had created higher expectations here," the union noted.

"The lack of broad support and the failure to fully repair the inflation gap are contrary to FNV policy principles. We decided to present this negotiation result anyway to leave the decision to the members. It now appears that there is not enough support to deviate from these policy principles, so we have decided not to accept these collective labor agreements. We therefore call on NS to restart negotiations with labor unions."