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NL Worker Compass
Glastuinbouw · 2026–2027

Annual hours model for greenhouse horticulture: plus hours and minus hours

This is how you check the annual hours model, your hours balance and the settlement. Understand the difference with a regular weekly schedule.

Sources checked: 2 minutes of readingSources for this explanation

This is an automatic translation of the Dutch explanation. If in doubt, check the Dutch text and the original collective labor agreement. Read this explanation in Dutch

The short answer

In the annual hours model, labor is distributed over a longer period. Busy weeks can yield plus hours and quiet weeks minus hours. The balance will be assessed at the agreed settlement time; An additional hour is therefore not automatically payable for immediate overtime.

Place the appointments next to your timesheet

Ask for the written agreement, start date, end date and your personal hour standard. Also check how vacation, public holidays and other absences are processed in that standard. Always compare the same period. Simply adding all the hours worked and dividing by 52 can conceal differences, for example if you start early, receive fewer contract hours or your employment ends.

Check the final bill separately

Article 20 describes the settlement of the balance. Remaining plus hours can become overtime when billing; further provisions apply to the handling and exceptions. Short hours are not automatically the employee's fault. Therefore, ask for the exact collective labor agreement basis before deducting minor hours from salary or vacation. An end of employment deserves its own settlement.

This is how you check it

  1. Request the agreement about the annual hours model and the personal standard.
  2. Check monthly hours worked, absence and interim compensation.
  3. At the time of payment, ask for a breakdown of plus hours, minus hours and any surcharge.
Practical example

Your overview contains 20 plus hours after a busy month. In a calmer period later, fewer hours worked can change the balance. The plus position halfway through the period is therefore not the same as 20 definitive overtime hours at the end.

Questions about this CAO

Is an annual hours model the same as a different contract every week?

No. The model divides hours within agreed rules. The contract scope, standard and method of payment must remain clear.

Can I check my balance at any time?

Request a time sheet and compare it with your own registration. Don't wait until the last pay slip of the year.

Can an employer always withhold minus hours?

No, that's not a general rule. Ask which collective labor agreement provision and which facts justify a possible settlement.

What if you leave employment mid-year?

Request a settlement for the actually applicable period. Reason for departure, notice period and collective labor agreement exceptions may be relevant.

Sources for this explanation

Sources checked:

Original documents · PDF