Dutch companies hired 13,500 refugees and asylum seekers last year amid labor shortages
Large Dutch companies hired 13,500 recognized refugees and asylum seekers last year, NU.nl reports. The hires included both permanent positions and temporary agency contracts. The jobs are concentrated in logistics, hospitality, facility services, and technical work.
Companies, including Heijmans, have also separately recruited dozens of recognized refugees. The hiring is helping address labor shortages.
By the end of 2030, the government aims to have about 75,000 more recognized refugees active in the labor market than this year.
The figures come from Tent Nederland. It is a coalition of 51 major companies that helps recognized refugees, Ukrainian refugees, and asylum seekers enter the Dutch labor market. Members include Philips, Arcadis, IKEA, Marriott International, Randstad, ABN AMRO, Kraft Heinz, Unilever, and Vebego.
Tent Nederland was founded last year. It grew out of Tent Partnership for Refugees, a global network of 500 major companies that support refugees. The network was founded by Hamdi Ulukaya, CEO of U.S. yogurt company Chobani.
Companies are becoming better at reaching refugees, said Hélène van Melle, director of Tent Nederland. That increasingly includes asylum seekers, who have been allowed to work full time since a change in the law in 2023.
"Employers initially had great difficulty getting in contact with these people. But we are seeing within a year that companies are open to employing asylum seekers," Van Melle told NU.nl.
Tent Nederland connects employers directly with refugees through local and regional job fairs, among other initiatives. It works with municipalities and the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA).
"The first results are positive. Companies are very satisfied with these new employees. They are loyal, motivated, and eager to work. Absenteeism among this group is very low, and it is a solution to the tight labor market," Van Melle said.
Some companies have pursued their own recruitment efforts. Construction company Heijmans is not a member of Tent Nederland, but it has hired 60 recognized refugees over the past two years.
The government also wants recognized refugees and asylum seekers to enter employment as quickly as possible. The government's goal is for 60 percent of people entering the country to have a full-fledged job five years after receiving their residence status.
