With this member letter we inform you about the collective labor agreement negotiations and a member benefit.
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CLA negotiations
The commitment letters are due on October 11, 2023 De Unie, other trade unions and employers explained to each other. In the letter from employers you can read their commitment to wages & duration, pension, sustainable employability & flexible working, the attractiveness of the sector and adjustments in collective labor agreement texts. In the oral explanation, their proposals on wages, pension, overtime and vitality were further clarified.
The wage offer of 4% is the maximum per year from January 1 and can be a combination of structural and incidental wages. The percentage arises from the many cost increases that companies experience in the area of regulatory pressure, rising raw material prices, inflation and competition, which means that they cannot pass on all costs to the customer. For example, life companies have no options to adjust their rates because life policies are long-term contracts. The rising costs must then be absorbed in business operations and personnel costs are a major part of this.
The 18% pension premium mentioned in the letter is the employer's share in addition to the employee's 3,5% personal contribution. The premium does not include surcharges for administration costs and risk premiums, but does include a risk sharing/solidarity reserve to be formed (only applicable if this is chosen).
Employers find the distinction between overtime and additional work unclear and want to adjust/level the definition. This also in combination with the possibilities of flexible working. A detailed proposal for this will be presented in the next round.
There is also a desire to adjust the vitality scheme. Employers indicate that there are employees who use this scheme to take extra days off and they believe this is not the intention. In their proposal, no more days of leave can be taken and that a personal plan must also be drawn up in advance with the manager about what the employee will do to improve his/her vitality.
After discussing the commitment letters, we reviewed the list of textual and legal changes in the current collective labor agreement text. Now that the efforts of all parties are known, a matrix will be created and we will pick up some topics to negotiate in the next round of negotiations. The upcoming meetings are Wednesday November 1, Wednesday November 15, Friday November 24, Wednesday December 13 and finally Tuesday December 19, 2023.
What do our members think?
The efforts of employers are known and with the explanation given, I am curious what our members think of it? Are the arguments recognized and/or are there (other) insights? The feedback from our members is important to be able to make good agreements. Naturally, these will be treated confidentially.
Member Benefits
In the collective labor agreement, trade unions and employers have agreed to organize a 'trade union month'. This has become the month of October 2023. As a member of De Unie half of the trade union contribution can be reimbursed by: De Unie annual statement 2023 to be submitted to your employer this month. Nice benefit, right?
Contact
If you have any questions or comments about this message, please send an email to the representative Emanuel Geurts at emanuel.geurts@unie.nl or call 06-52522074. Do you have an individual question or need for advice? Please contact our service center at sc@unie.nl or by telephone on 0345-851963. We are happy to help you!
