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NL Worker Compass
Practical guide · 2026

Employment contracts and CAO

Check your hours, probation, notice and the collective agreement before signing.

Last verified: 4 October 2026Official Dutch sources

The short answer

Read the employment agreement together with the applicable collective labour agreement, called CAO. A short contract can refer to a much longer CAO. Ask which version applies and where you can read it before accepting the offer.

Check the legal employer, work location, job, gross pay, guaranteed hours, start and end dates, holiday allowance, pension and notice terms. Probation must follow legal limits: a fixed-term contract of six months or less cannot include a probation period. Other limits depend on contract length and, in some cases, the CAO.

Read what happens when work changes

The most important clauses often become visible only when the assignment ends, shifts disappear or you become sick. Check the legal employer, guaranteed hours, termination options and CAO now. Keep promises made in recruitment messages and ask for contradictions with the contract to be resolved in writing.

Separate agreement from acknowledgement

Before signing, identify whether a document merely confirms receipt, changes employment terms or ends the employment entirely. A translated explanation can help comprehension, but an important settlement or disputed restriction deserves independent advice. Store the original and all attachments where you can reach them after portal access ends.

What to do next

  1. Get a copy you understand and compare it with the job advertisement and written promises.
  2. Ask whether hours are fixed, on-call or subject to an agency clause, and what happens if no work is available.
  3. Check early termination before resigning from a fixed-term contract; it is not always possible.
A practical example

An offer of “up to 40 hours” is different from a guarantee of 40 paid hours. Compare a low-hours week as well as a normal week before deciding whether the housing costs remain affordable.

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Questions people ask

Is the employer’s housing part of my employment contract?

For employer-arranged migrant-worker housing, you should receive a separate rental agreement. Read the termination and payment terms in both documents; the end of employment does not answer every housing question.

Is an oral promise enough for budgeting?

A written guarantee is easier to check and prove. Keep messages and ask the employer to put essential pay and hours promises in the agreement.

Does the employer need to dismiss me at the agreed end date?

A fixed-term contract can end automatically on its agreed date. Notification requirements and payment consequences are separate checks.

Am I guaranteed 40 hours if that was advertised?

Not necessarily. Check the signed hours clause and keep the advertisement or messages if they conflict with the contract.

Is one month always the correct notice?

No. Contract type, probation and valid CAO or contract provisions can change the rule.

Sources

Last verified: 4 October 2026. Sources are in Dutch or English.