Dutch court rules Picnic, Flink must pay back wages under supermarket labor agreement
A Dutch appeals court in Arnhem ruled that online supermarkets Picnic and Flink fall under the supermarket collective labor agreement (CAO), overturning the companies’ claims that they are not supermarkets. This decision means that both companies must pay backdated wage supplements to about 35,000 employees for the period from September 13, 2022, to July 1, 2023. The financial impact could be significant, according to Trouw.
The dispute over whether these online grocers qualify as supermarkets has been ongoing. The ruling confirms that digital supermarkets must comply with the same labor agreements as traditional supermarkets.
Michiel Al, a leader at the FNV union, welcomed the decision. “The court again emphasizes that web supermarkets and quick-delivery services are also supermarkets, albeit in a digital form,” he said.
Picnic previously won a similar legal case in 2019, after which supermarket labor agreement texts were revised. The FNV points out that a court in Utrecht ruled last year that online supermarkets are regular stores. The e-commerce industry association E-commerce Nederland, representing Picnic and Flink, appealed that ruling and now plans to take the case to the Supreme Court.
The case focuses specifically on wage supplements owed during the nearly ten-month period in 2022 and 2023. Picnic and Flink had paid lower wages, arguing they did not fall under the supermarket CAO. The court rejected that defense.
