Everybody is entitled to minimum wage

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Edwin Dean
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1 Everybody is entitled to minimum wage

2 Are you receiving a minimum wage? Are you working in the Netherlands and are you below the age of 65? Then you are entitled to the Dutch minimum wage. This also applies if you are a foreigner. Your employer may pay you more, but not less. You are also entitled to holiday allowance. Gross minimum wage The gross minimum wage is set out in the Minimum Wage and Minimum Holiday Allowance Act (Wet minimumloon en minimumvakantiebijslag). Your employer is obliged to put the gross minimum wage that applies to you on your wage slip. Your employer deducts tax and national insurance contributions from the gross amounts. That is why your net wage is lower. Net wage is the wage you will receive. Each year, the gross amounts are increased on 1 January and on 1 July. Gross minimum wage on 1 January 2009 in euros Age Per month Per week Per day 23 years and over 1.381,20 318,75 63,75 22 years 1.174,00 270,90 54,18 21 years 1.001,35 231,10 46,22 20 years 849,45 196,05 39,21 19 years 725,15 167,35 33,47 18 years 628,45 145,05 29,01 17 years 545,55 125,90 25,18 16 years 476,50 109,95 21,99 15 years 414,35 95,60 19,12 2 EVERYBODY IS ENTITLED TO MINIMUM WAGE

3 Net minimum wage The net amounts are not specified in the Act. The net wage is the wage you receive in your account or in cash. How much you receive net depends on the tax and national insurance contributions which are deducted from your wage. This can be different for each person. With the amounts in the table you know roughly what you should earn. EVERYBODY IS ENTITLED TO MINIMUM WAGE 3

4 What is the amount of your hourly minimum wage? The amounts of the statutory minimum wage apply to a full working week. Usually this is 36, 38 or 40 hours per week. It depends on the sector in which you work. If you work part-time, the minimum wage you are entitled to is also lower. If you work more hours, you are entitled to a higher wage. Example: A full working week of 38 hours applies at your company. You re 23 years old and work only 24 hours per week. You should receive at least 201,31 gross per week. This is the minimum working week wage of 318,75 divided by 38 hours, multiplied by 24 hours. Gross minimum wage per hour for a 36, 38, and 40 hour working week, on 1 January 2009 in euros. Age working week: 36 hours working week: 38 hours working week: 40 hours 23 years old or over minimum wage per hour: minimum wage per hour: minimum wage per hour: 8,85 8,39 7,97 22 years 7,53 7,13 6,77 21 years 6,42 6,08 5,78 20 years 5,45 5,16 4,90 19 years 4,65 4,40 4,18 18 years 4,03 3,82 3,63 17 years 3,50 3,31 3,15 16 years 3,05 2,89 2,75 4 EVERYBODY IS ENTITLED TO MINIMUM WAGE

5 15 years 2,66 2,52 2,39 Piece work wages Even if you are paid piece work wages, you will be entitled to the minimum wage. Piece work is, for instance: payment per case, per kilogram, per square metre. For one hour s work at a normal pace you should be able to earn the minimum wage per hour. How much is the holiday allowance? If you work in the Netherlands, you are entitled to holiday allowance. In the Act this is called minimum holiday allowance. This should not be less than 8 percent of your gross wage. The holiday allowance is paid on top of your ordinary wage. Your employer can pay this amount in parts or in one lump sum once a year. The holiday allowance must be stated separately on your wage slip. If you stop working for your employer, your employer must pay you the remaining holiday allowance, together with your last earned wage. EVERYBODY IS ENTITLED TO MINIMUM WAGE 5

6 What can you do if the wage you receive is too low? If your wage is below the minimum level, first talk with your employer. If this does not help, you can submit a complaint to the. You can also do this anonymously. See the addresses and telephone numbers at the back of this brochure. You can also go directly to the District Court. A trade union, legal advice centre, legal help desk or social advisor can give you advice. You can also claim wages at a later stage Even if you discover at a later stage that your wage was below the minimum level, you can claim the unpaid difference. You can do this within 5 years. You must claim unpaid holiday allowance within two years. 6 EVERYBODY IS ENTITLED TO MINIMUM WAGE

7 More information Do you have any other questions about this brochure or do you want to order more copies of it? Just call the Postbus 51 info call centre, tel (free of charge), or if calling from a foreign country, or visit On you will also find English language information about the minimum wage and holiday allowance, social security and safety and health at work. Are you underpaid? Just call the office of the closest to your work: Groningen PO Box RM Groningen Tel Amsterdam PO Box HJ Amsterdam Tel Rotterdam PO Box AN Rotterdam Tel Arnhem PO Box DX Arnhem Tel Utrecht PO Box AV Utrecht Tel Roermond PO Box AX Roermond Tel EVERYBODY IS ENTITLED TO MINIMUM WAGE 7

8 Postbus LV Den Haag Ordernumber 207E January 2009 Free publication

Certificates of Good Conduct

Certificates of Good Conduct Contents This booklet 3 When is a certificate of good conduct required? 3 Where can I apply for a certificate of good conduct? 4 How do I apply to the municipal authorities