KNM 1: Werk en inkomen
Work and income. This theme is about finding work, keeping it and earning your own income. The new attainment targets stress knowledge: what the rules are and where to go, more than how you should behave.
Practice this theme
Read the study notes below first, or start straight away.
Practice questions
Each answer is explained, and the ones you miss come back in your review.40 questions, not started
Study notes
Looking for work
- You are expected to make an effort to earn your own income. Under the 2021 law the Module Arbeidsmarkt en Participatie (MAP) or training prepares you for work.
- People find jobs through their own network (netwerk), online job sites (vacaturebanken) and employment agencies (uitzendbureaus), where you can register.
- When you apply (solliciteren) you usually use an online application form, a cover letter (sollicitatiebrief) or a CV. A job interview (sollicitatiegesprek) takes preparation, and employers usually like it when you ask a few questions about the work and the terms.
- Your chances depend on your education, experience, availability, motivation and Dutch. Employers can set requirements for language and communication skills.
- Have a foreign diploma valued so employers understand it. DUO points to IDW (Internationale Diplomawaardering), which is free for most people who integrate.
- Extra training (bijscholing) improves your chances.
No work or unable to work
- Lost your job or became unable to work after working? Contact UWV straight away to register and apply for a benefit such as the WW (unemployment benefit).
- Never worked here? Contact the municipality (gemeente) to register and apply for social assistance (bijstand).
- The Netherlands has a (temporary) safety net: bijstand, WW, disability benefit and allowances, for people who cannot find work despite trying or cannot work for physical or mental reasons.
- With a benefit you have rights and duties. In principle you must accept work you are offered, and a change in your income can change your benefit.
At work
- An employment contract (arbeidsovereenkomst) sets out the rights and duties of employee and employer: hours, pay, leave, illness, safety and more.
- Many sectors have a collective labor agreement (cao), agreed between employers and unions. A cao may be better than the law, never worse: no pay below the minimum wage.
- You can still negotiate your own terms with the employer, whatever the cao says.
- Know the difference between a permanent contract (vast contract), a temporary one (tijdelijk contract) and one through an agency. After more than 3 temporary contracts, or more than 3 years of them with the same employer, a contract becomes permanent automatically, unless the cao says otherwise.
- A probation period (proeftijd) lasts at most 1 or 2 months depending on the contract; none is allowed in a contract of 6 months or less.
- Part-time work (deeltijd) is very common in the Netherlands.
- Your work can be assessed in a review meeting (beoordelingsgesprek), which you can prepare for.
- Employees take part through a works council (ondernemingsraad) or staff association; unions (vakbonden) stand up for workers' rights and negotiate cao's.
- The employer withholds taxes and premiums from your gross salary and pays them on.
Discrimination at work
- Discrimination in hiring and at work is forbidden by law, by the employer and by colleagues.
- If you suspect discrimination you can go to a confidential adviser (vertrouwenspersoon), a union, or an organization for equal rights.
Starting your own business
- Registering with the Kamer van Koophandel (KVK) is required to start a business, and the KVK can help starters.
- Income from a business changes your right to a benefit, so talk to the benefit agency or the municipality first.
- As a self-employed person you arrange your own extra pension and disability insurance.
Words to know
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| de vacature | job opening |
| solliciteren | to apply for a job |
| het uitzendbureau | employment agency |
| de arbeidsovereenkomst | employment contract |
| de cao | collective labor agreement |
| de proeftijd | probation period |
| de vakbond | trade union |
| de ondernemingsraad | works council |
| de uitkering | benefit payment |
| de bijstand | social assistance |
| de WW | unemployment benefit |
| bruto en netto | gross and net |
Next
Official sources
Rules and amounts change: your letter from DUO and Mijn Inburgering always win.