Working vocational students to get youth minimum wage
Vocational students in the Netherlands enrolled in work-study programs will soon be entitled to the statutory minimum youth wage. The proposal comes from outgoing Education Minister Robbert D. Bruins of the New Social Contract (NSC) party and is intended to make vocational education more fair and appealing, RTL reports.
The change applies specifically to students in the work-based learning pathway (beroepsbegeleidende leerweg, BBL), a dual-track vocational program where students spend one or two days per week in school and the remaining days working at a certified training company. Currently, these students often earn much less than their peers in regular employment, which has caused many to quit their studies prematurely.
To address the problem, Bruins plans to ensure BBL students receive at least the statutory minimum youth wage. Under the proposal, for example, an 18-year-old student’s hourly wage would increase from 6.40 to 7.03 euros. A 20-year-old would see wages rise from 8.65 to 11.25 euros per hour.
“This makes the situation for working vocational students fairer and more attractive,” Bruins said.
He hopes the pay increase will encourage more young people to choose the work-based learning track, which currently enrolls about 130,000 students across the Netherlands.
The initiative comes amid growing concern about the declining number of students in senior secondary vocational education (middelbaar beroepsonderwijs, MBO), especially in sectors suffering severe labor shortages. The government has recently allocated millions of euros to vocational schools to reverse this trend, warning that the Netherlands “urgently needs” the skilled workers these programs produce.
