Law against discrimination in job applications falls in Senate

The law intended to prevent discrimination in job applications has failed in the Senate after an exceptional handling. The proposal by outgoing Minister Karien van Gennip did not receive a majority in the Eerste Kamer, despite concessions she made to the VVD, among others.

To discuss the latest concessions, the Senate held a fourth meeting on Tuesday evening to discuss the bill. Typically, treatment lasts two sessions. The VVD voted in favor of the proposal in the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament. However, the Liberals’ faction in the Senate says it is not sure whether the law will have an effect, while it will lead to additional rules for (small) companies.

The law would require companies to have a working method to combat discrimination in job applications and report on this. Van Gennip had promised that the stricter rules would only apply to companies with at least 50 employees. There would also be no enforcement in the first two years. The VVD faction was not reassured. According to GroenLinks-PvdA, the liberals were looking for an excuse not to agree with the law.

Parties responded differently to Van Gennip’s proposed adjustments. GroenLinks-PvdA called them “bearable.” The SP said they were highly disappointed with the “watering down.” The VVD said the Minister did not choose “the elegant path.” She suggested submitting a new bill after the original proposal had been adopted. In doing so, the Minister essentially asked parliament to agree to a “ghost bill,” according to VVD Senator Koen Peterson.

The SGP, an opponent of the law, also disagreed with the form. “I have the feeling that we are slaloming constitutionally,” said faction leader Peter Schalk in the debate. According to him, this leads to an “erratic path with an uncertain outcome.” GroenLinks-PvdA Senator Mei Li Vos disagreed, saying that Van Gennip proposed a very “usual route.”

The outgoing Minister herself clearly expressed her disappointment in a response on social media. “Extremely painful that an andi-discrimination law is voted down,” Van Gennip wrote. “This is really a missed opportunity.”