Top Dutch union aiming for wage increases of 3.5 to 5 percent in bargaining negotiations

The trade union CNV is pushing for a wage increase of 3.5 to 5 percent in the new collective labor agreement negotiations. This demand is slightly lower than last year’s 3.5 to 6 percent. The new wage request is based on expected inflation of 2.6 percent and labor productivity of 1.7 percent, according to CNV chairman Piet Fortuin.

“In recent years, we have fought wholeheartedly for substantial wage increases, sometimes as high as 20 percent. This was necessary: many workers had been underpaid for years while inflation was soaring. For CNV, it is unacceptable that working people live in poverty. By now, most wages are at a decent level,” said Fortuin.

The union is also focusing on a life-phase collective labor agreement in the coming year. Most of the agreement will remain collective and apply to all employees covered by it, but a small part can be tailored by workers themselves, depending on their stage of life or personal needs.

This includes packages such as “Fit to the Finish” for older employees, the “Care & Work Package” for young parents and caregivers, or the “Cash Package” for those who prefer to receive employment benefits in money.

“For many people, daily life feels like juggling work, private life, and caregiving. Paid work, caring for relatives, raising children, pursuing education, working longer. With the life-phase agreement, we are responding to the differences between employees,” said Fortuin.

With these tailored arrangements, the union hopes to keep workers fit, healthy, and satisfied at a time of rising absenteeism, a tight labor market, and an aging society where no one can be missed.