Power to the pensioners!

Nautilus has won a campaign to allow Dutch workers in heavy jobs to retire early without a tax penalty. Sarah Robinson reports

Union members in the Netherlands are celebrating an important change to employment law which will allow seafarers and inland waterways crew to start their retirement feeling fitter and healthier.

As regular readers of the Nautilus Telegraph will know, the campaign to amend the law has been running for several years now, and it hinges on the principle that people who do physically-demanding work like seafaring should be allowed to retire before the state pension age – which is currently 67 in the Netherlands and is expected to rise to 70 in the next few years.

Fined for retiring

The main issue in the campaign was that workers and employers were being financially penalised for making an agreement between themselves that the worker could retire early. The workers weren't expecting to receive their state pensions early, but the government felt that it would have been missing out on the income tax they would have paid if they had stayed in work. It therefore fined the workers and employers for making the early retirement agreement.

'The fine is really high,' says Nautilus executive officer Richard Moti. 'It's about 100% of the arrangement you get. So if you make an arrangement with your employer to have an early retirement for, say, one year, and that arrangement costs €20,000, the government taxes that arrangement at €20,000.'

The initial campaign

The idea of seafarers potentially being fined unless they worked until they were 70 prompted Nautilus to join with other Dutch unions whose members were employed in 'heavy jobs' to campaign for change.

This led to a partial victory in 2019, says Mr Moti. 'We advocated for a new law and to abolish this tax fine, and the government listened to that, but they only implemented the change temporarily, meaning that the old law would return in 2025.'

Fighting for permanent change

So the union campaigners rolled up their sleeves again in early 2024 and pushed for the changes – often known by the initials RVU – to be made permanent. Some of the participating unions organised strike action, but Nautilus went down the petition route, with over 2,500 members signing. 'We also got members to sound their ships' horns when they were in ports, to make some noise to get attention for this important issue.'

And in October, the news came that the campaigners had won! The unions negotiated a permanent RVU settlement with social affairs and employment minister Eddy van Hijum, and with employers.

A package of measures

'Thanks to the permanent arrangements, there is finally security for all people in heavy work, old and young,' says Mr Moti. 'They will soon be able to retire up to three years earlier.'

The permanent arrangements also include positive changes to the financial conditions for employees to take part, and confirmation that there will be no limit to the number of eligible employees.

Another important provision is that unions – not the government – will decide for themselves what constitutes 'heavy work' by agreeing this with employers at the collective bargaining table. 'Heavy work can include long hours and night shifts, which are common in seafaring,' Mr Moti points out. 'We want seafarers and inland waterways crew to reach retirement in good shape so they can enjoy the healthy later years they deserve.'

Winning in your workplace

Following the RVU victory, Richard Moti has a message for all Nautilus members. 'Perhaps you participated in the actions yourself or you know someone in the Netherlands with a heavy job who can now stop work in time for a good retirement. This result belongs to all of us, and it's something we as a trade union can be proud of.

'I want to ask you to do one more thing. Talk to your colleagues about this result. This arrangement shows that if we fight together for a fair and supportive world, we can achieve a lot. And if your colleague wants that too, ask him or her to also become a member of Nautilus International, the trade union for maritime professionals.'