ABU Fair Employment Code

What can you expect from the employment agency?

We are a member of/certified by the ABU. This means that the employment agency is independently audited to ensure compliance with laws and regulations. The ABU employment agency also ensures that you are clearly and correctly informed about working and living in the Netherlands. They do this in cooperation with the recruitment agency in your country of origin. In addition to correctly following laws and regulations, you can expect the following from an ABU-certified employment agency:

Safety and Health:Your safety and health are the highest priorities. The ABU employment agency complies with all laws and regulations and also applies the guidelines from the ABU Corona Safety Protocol for Migrant Workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. This protocol is updated as the pandemic evolves. The employment agency will inform you of the applicable guidelines.
Recruitment and Selection: The employment agency ensures that the recruitment agency in your country of origin applies the guidelines from the ABU Fair Recruitment Charter. Your recruiter will share this charter and the accompanying information and educational material with you.
Contract: The employment agreement and associated documents are available to you in both Dutch and your native language.
Compensation: You will receive equal pay for equal work compared to Dutch temporary workers, in accordance with the rules of the collective labor agreement (CAO).
Registration: The recruitment agency and the employment agency will explain the registration rules in the Netherlands to you. Dutch law requires you to register correctly in the government’s basic registration system. The recruitment agency in your country of origin will give you the first information about the difference between the two registration options in the Netherlands: registration as a non-resident (RNI) and registration as a resident in the Basic Registration of Persons (BRP). Do you meet the RNI rules but prefer to register as a resident in the BRP? Ask if this is possible in the municipality where you will live. Not all municipalities allow this. The employment agency can assist you with the registration rules.
Housing: The recruitment agency will provide you with the initial necessary information about living in the Netherlands. Your recruiter will inform you about the housing options. You will also receive information about the conditions if you choose to have House of Work arrange housing for you. You can also search for housing yourself. If you ask the employment agency to arrange housing, the following information is important for you:
- Housing arranged by the employment agency is certified by the SNF organization. This means that the housing is checked for important aspects. Information about the SNF quality mark and the SNF complaints portal can be found on the following website: normeringflexwonen.nl/information-for-residents.
- The employment agency may charge you for the use of housing. These costs are not higher than the actual housing costs. The employment agency may deduct a maximum of 25% of the statutory minimum wage from your payslip for this. Do you want the housing costs to be deducted from your payslip? Let us know, and we will arrange it. If the costs for housing exceed 25% of the minimum wage, the portion of the housing costs that is above the minimum wage earned may also be deducted. You will be informed in advance about the housing costs.
- If the employment contract ends, the housing provided by the employment agency will also end. In accordance with the rental agreement, which is agreed upon in writing, the return and termination will be arranged in consultation.
- You can always ask the employment agency for general information about other housing options in the region.
Fines and Damages The employment agency may only deduct judicial and administrative fines from your payslip. An example of this is a traffic fine you received yourself. Deducting other types of fines from the payslip is prohibited. However, you may be held liable for damage that you intentionally or recklessly cause to the employer or landlord. The compensation is then a maximum of the actual repair costs of the damaged object.
Information: The employment agency, together with the recruitment agency, ensures that you are informed about working and living in the Netherlands before you sign contracts or pre-contracts in your country of origin. The recruitment agency follows the guidelines from the attached ABU Fair Recruitment Charter.
Language and Integration: The employment agency will point out the available opportunities to take language courses at the municipality during your initial period in the Netherlands. Not every municipality offers language lessons.
Complaints: The employment agency must provide you with an accessible complaints procedure. If your recruitment agency and/or employment agency fails to fulfill a commitment from this document, you can file a complaint with the employment agency. If the complaint is not resolved, you can also file a complaint with the ABU hotline. Send an email to: complaints@abu.nl. Be sure to mention the name of the employment agency and describe your complaint. The ABU will address the complaint as soon as possible.

What can the employment agency expect from you? It is expected that agreements made by the employment agency, the recruitment agency, and yourself are honored. This ensures a good collaboration for all parties. It is important that you are well informed about working and living in the Netherlands. Therefore, the recruiter will ask you to confirm that you have been adequately informed about all the points in this document.

Source: ABU.nl