Strikes followed in rapid succession in recent weeks. Monday morning it was still hit in Tilburg, where bus drivers from Arriva stopped work unannounced. Unusual in the Netherlands, but certainly not a surprise, according to labor market professor Ton Wilthagen of Tilburg University. “The staff shortage is the big catalyst.”
It is nothing new that workers and unions are dissatisfied. “There are two things that they have been struggling with for some time. First of all, they want to get rid of the many uncertain flex contracts. In addition, they already complained before the corona crisis about wages, which barely increase in relation to the profits of companies.” In the latter, the employees are not alone. “Prime Minister Rutte and the President of the Dutch Central Bank have also expressed their concerns about this.”
According to Wilthagen, it can be logically explained that these complaints are now culminating in a wave of strikes. “A lot of collective labor agreements have to be extended again. That is why the responsible trade unions and employee organizations are now coming up with their demands. In addition, people are extra worried about the enormous inflation.”
“Even if people quit their jobs, they won’t be fired.”
However, the real cause has not yet been identified. “The shortage on the labor market. It acts as a catalyst. Employees have the idea that there is really something to gain. They are suddenly in a position to enforce things. Because even if they suddenly stop working, layoffs will they don’t become.”
The big example was the wildcat strike at Schiphol at the beginning of this month. “Then it was the employees themselves who said: ‘We no longer want to work for those 11 euros. We will stop.” The unions were hardly involved, but they did see the panic that started at the company. It seems that they now also realize that the momentum is on their side.”
And so, according to Wilthagen, it is likely that companies will eventually give in. “In the past, strikes quickly failed. For example, because companies could fall back on flex workers and self-employed people. And the fact that the power of the unions has diminished greatly in recent years did not help either.”
“It won’t be here anytime soon, like in France or Belgium.”
Now that things are suddenly completely different due to the staff shortage, we don’t seem to have got rid of the strikes for the time being. “Wherever a breakthrough has yet to come, employees will now dare to act faster.”
But are we also becoming a bit more brutal in the workplace in the long term? “In general, we are a country of peace in industrial relations. Every now and then we have a restless peak, but like in France or Belgium it will not be here anytime soon.”
ALSO READ: Bus drivers in Den Bosch strike on Tuesday for a better collective labor agreement