Getting Laid Off (Fired): USA vs. The Netherlands 

What have your experiences been with layoffs or getting fired in The Netherlands, USA, somewhere else? Tips & advice? Please share so we can help each other 🙏 ***CORRECTIONS*** - Max unemployment in NL is now 24 months (down from 38)

LEARN DUTCH! I find many Expat friends who lose their jobs and want to stay (say because of love) can't find a similar job because they don't speak Dutch and end up working in cafés. So when you really desire to stay learn Dutch. It hugely widens you job opportunities in this country.

As someone working for the UWV in the WW department this is quite accurate and well explained. Thanks for the appreciation!

Dutch here. I have been layed off due to "performance issues". But at the moment my employer had decided that he wanted to send me off, I approached him with my own unhappiness. So that was actually a very good conversation. We agreed on some terms, and I went looking for a new job, while continuing really contributing to the business as well as I could. So no bad blood. A few years later I approached him as a customer. He sold some stuff I needed. So we had a cup of coffee over my new job and came to business. Sometimes things happen. That is painful. But taking that out on anyone doesn't help anyone, least of all yourself.

"In the Netherlands most companies provide healthcare." - I'm Dutch and I've never heard of a company that does this in my life. Is that an expat thing? p.s. Love this video David! Very fun.

Layoffs in the Netherlands are generally better arranged than the ones in the USA. While in the USA, I was still working for the Dutch company I used to work for, when I was living in the Netherlands. Then COVID hit and I thought it would be over for me immediately. Especially because I was self employed and was technically speaking not an employee. They only let me go when COVID lasted much longer than anticipated and with a couple months notice. All in all, I kept working for them until 13 months after COVID hit. For a business that only has customers in hospitality that pretty much shut down completely during those times, it was a pleasant surprise and something that would never happen in the USA.

thank you for the explainer! if all goes according to plan, I'm graduating by the end of the year and then I'll need to know the ins and out of the job market, all about changing from student to worker with the IND, etc. hope things go great for you, David!

Hi David, I really enjoyed your videos, and I am so sorry this happened to you. Sending you luck and positive energy for finding a position soon. Please reach out to the community if you need help or resources. We are here for you!

First of all, I wish you the best of luck in finding a new job. I really like this video of yours and I must say it is well researched what the laws and rights are for a person who is fired or fired due to illness, this information is very important.

Sad to hear you lost your job. Lucky though you're clearly a person that knows to make the best out of it and thus we got this amazing video :)

Wow this is pretty complete guide. Very solid information here. One little correction; max unemployment pay is 24 months at the moment. They changed it a while back from 38 to 24 months

In addition: you can simply become a member of a trade union such as FNV. They will help you in the event of dismissal with legal assistance or a lawyer, at no cost. They also help in conflicts with your employer.

Hey David, I hope you'll find new employment soon. But regarding lay-offs in general, the Netherlands unemployment laws at least help you for a short while. If you lose your job in Luxembourg though, you're covered extremely well, and for a much longer period. Your health insurance is sponsored by the state for the period of your unemployment benefits 😊 I wish you all the best ☘️

Nice video, thanks for sharing!

Correction: Dutch companies DON'T pay your health care. They sometimes have a 'deal' which is often shittier than getting healthcare yourself. Also: when people are let go, a common package in tech can be: a few months of pay and some help to get a new job. Either way.. the system a is bit too good to be useful and only works because most Dutch people don't know their rights. It's way too strict and hard to fire underperformers

Great vid again. I am certain you will find another job you like soon!

It's also good to know that when you get laid off, the UWV does not only take your last job into account, but rather all the jobs you had in the past 10 years. So if you worked at a company for 3 months and they lay you off, the UWV will use your employment history of all your jobs before the one you got laid off on as well. After 2 years of unemployment the 75-70% salary thing also stops btw: you then get only the bare minimum (bijstand).

Sorry to hear abt the news David. Wishing you all the best in your next adventure! When one door closes, many windows will open for you.

I've seen a lot of college's go, but thank god I am still in the place where I am at. 10 years now :) Great job with a lot of freedom and where people know how to act with my autism.

My dad used to work at a bank in car fleet insurance and they kept trimming people in all departments and then the financial crisis hit and the bank had been too sloppy, needed help from the gov and needed to lay people off. But due to how forcefully the layoffs needed to be, the severance was massive. He got 3 months pay per year worked or something crazy like that, walked away with a bit over 6 figures, started his own company. PS: We also have Bijstand/participatiewet which is sort of like jobseekers allowance, you will get a small amount of money while you're looking, depending on some factors which doesn't have to do with the WA. That is really quite a tiny number though, so while it works as a net to keep people off the street, it's certainly not rewarding.

I am glad you showed the whole story, including the party hats they make unemployed people wear so everyone can spot them. It's not all sunshine and roses, you know.

Hi David, Sorry to hear about your misfortune. Sending positive energy, hoping you will be able to find a new job to your liking soon.

At 8:18, it's good to note that UWV sets a maximum monthly salary of € 5.969. So if you're earning more than that and are laid off, your unemployment benefits will be 75% or 70% of that set maximum, not your actual salary.

Your video has given me much more confidence. My company just did the “mass layoff” announcement, and its roughly 50% of NL professional staff. Im 2 months away from being eligible to apply for my permanent residence. Hopefully the works council talks take longer than that and if i get picked out can negotiate for some really long garden leave during the permanent residence application wait time. Looks like it should be doable based on the examples you gave

Great video. There are stark differences between the US and Europe. I am originally from Germany, and like the Netherlands, a company cannot just lay you off because they think they want too. The laws are pretty strikt and safe for employees. It goes even further, as the government even pays for university and more to get you onto a new career paths. In my case, after high school, I went to trade school and later University to become a telecommunication specialist and worked for the German Post/Telekom. Than I quit my job and moved to another part in Germany, during the German Post became privatized to the Telekom we all know today. However, during that time, thousands of people lost their jobs (in a human way) but because of that, I couldn't get a job at my new destination. So the German Arbeitsamt offered me to get a Masters degree in IT when I go for 2-3 years to University. They not only paid for University, but I also got a monthly check to pay for rent and living expense...ah yes, and health care is free in that case anyways. After finishing my degree, I got a great job at Siemens. This helped me a lot in my future careers and I am forever grateful for that opportunity. Thank you, Germany! In the US, I was lucky to have worked for a very "social" company. They got acquired by a competitor and laid off a lot of people, including me. However, they gave me 2 month head time, plus a nice package. However, during that time they re-hired me and kept the overall time I worked with the previous company as my start date, giving me the benefits like more vacation than if I would have started just now. Overall, the German/European system is awesome for the employees. It also pushes companies to hire more cautiously and with more future in mind. However, it can hinder fast growth for businesses as it is way harder to fire somebody. Also, keep in mind that the employee is bound by the same rules. You cannot just leave from one day to another. You also have to let the company know 1-2-3... month in advance that you are going to leave, so they have time to find a suitable replacement.

This video definitely inspired me to resume my Dutch lessons!

small glitch at 2:01 idk if its easily fixable but thought I should mention it, other than that great video!

In 2014 I got laid of by the Army due to budget cuts, so I started working for the UWV 😅

Sad to hear you were let go. It's good to be prepared and never sign right away. Regardless of the benefits and safety net in the Netherlands losing your job has an effect on your mental health. I hope you find a new position soon. Take care.

I'm Dutch and even I learned something now. Good thing you told me to never sign immediately. All these rules provide such large benefits to all of us, and to employers too. Employers are invested in their employees, which encourages a cycle of growth and development for the employees. This results in better employees overall and a happy company in the end. ❤ I love where I was born, and I would never want to leave

There's a very important thing to mention - if you're fired/laid off/whatever during your probation, which can take up to 2 month iirc, then you can be let go without any notice and even without providing a reason. It doesn't happen very ofter, but still important to know.

David, best of luck with getting a new job!

Hopefully I won't need this but thank you. And hopefully you'll find a position quickly.

Great video! Sorry to hear you lost your job, and I hope you are able to find a new one here okay. I am currently working my first job in the Netherlands and have a 1-year contract (with opportunity to continue with mutual agreement). I sometimes get really nervous about whether I will be let go after that year. But my Dutch friends assure me that 6 months into the job I would have an idea that they wouldn't want to keep me on board AND I'm told that they have to tell me whether they will continue my contract in advance so I have some time to look for a new job.

In Belgium minimum settlements are determined by law. Longer can be given and can be done with e.g. mass layoff. I worked at 1 company for a year, Mass layoff and I got 7 months. Next company, a year. 5 months. And both explained that if I were not with a Union, it would be best to become a member of any Union, so the Union will handle your unemployment benefits. In reality that means you get payment directly instead of trying to get it done all by yourself. In one situation it took me 9 months to get the money. Yes, you can join at any moment in your life, and unlike a gym, you can easily leave as well. When I was in a position where I had to fire people, I told them that as well. Imagine that: the company that fires you advises you to become a Union member. No company in Belgium really cares if you are a union member (elected members is different) as all have equal rights. And you can join and leave at any moment in your career. I even had one company who paid the union fees back.

You can always sign an agreement before starting work.

I knew back in the day, my dad got fired for no reason at all. But thank god he got to keep the deal for the house and also 100K from the place he worked at. Sadly both my parents were bad at money spending. So it went to waste. But I am seriously happy our jobs are safer to keep.

my mom got laid off after 30 years of working at a job and she got 2 years of her salary for "free" to find a new job in those 2 years. She doesn't need to work or something. You can see it as paid vacancy days but for 2 years. (this is in Belgium, neighbor of the Netherlands)

I hope you are okay and find a nice job soon 🧡

You should make a video comparing with Belgium: after some 20 years at my current job, severance is a bit short of 3 years, healthcare is and remains free and unemployment payment is not limited in time

I am no expert, but there is a few wrong assumptions here. I don't think its true that it is illegal in the netherlands to fire someone without good reason. However, firing someone without good reasons means the company is forced to pay. However, should an employee be fired because of good reason, the employee is NOT entitled to severance pay or anything else....

You forgot to mention that, in the netherlands, it can take you up to 3 years to get a contract for OBT (onbepaalde tijd). A company can give out 3 1-year contracts before giving you one. During these first years the company can choose to not give you a renewel for whatever reason they choose. But in this case you still get a transition package and unemployment benefits.

I'm so sorry for you David. I hope you'll find a new job very soon.

Had exactly the same experience in the NL. Did not sign the papers, went to Rechtswinkel in Amsterdam for advice, got a lawer and got money in my bankaccount for 3 months from the company and three months from the government. I was working just one year in the company, they fired my because of financial problems within the company.

I was laid off a few years back. And you’re right, don’t sign an agreement immediately. I got to my lawyer first, if I had not done that I would have gotten €16000 less than they actually had to pay me. Reason for being fired, my chronic disease. They played dirty, or better tried but I refused to agree with anything less than I had a right to

Correction, it depends. In Belgium if you are a public servant, it is mostly impssible to get fired. If you are an employee, you can get fired for cause without severance (must be a vallid lawful reason), or you can get dired with severance defined by law. So all depends how deep their pocket's are

Best of luck with whatever you want to do now!

Sorry to hear that! Good luck on finding your next opportunity! I am glad you mentioned that most expats/foreigners/etc. who are not European (and of course not American!), do not have the luxury of staying in the country more than 90 days to look for a job as they are basically tied to their job to be here! Of course, it is totally understandable but sometimes I feel like it does get glossed over a lot and creates misconceptions for local Dutch on how "easy" most expat s have it here

Also fell victim to a restructuring in Germany. Notice periods there are more generous with 6 months after 15 years worked. Health insurance the same as in NL (actually the Dutch system was introduced during the German occupation in the 1940s. After the war the Dutch simply kept it). One thimg one had to be cautious was the severance package. If one opts for more money instead of garden leave then unemployment benefits will not be paid during the time of the legal notice period and also reduces the months of benefit payments.

All the best !

I am dutch but dont have much working eperiance as a adult there, I worked at supermarkets and fast food, they work on a temproary contract. And after 3 they are not allowed to give you a 4th so its a permenant contract or you just stop working there. When i finished my education i moved out since the systems that catch you are great, the culture i find is not. I understand coming from the US how the Netherlands can be a breath of fresh air. Good luck in your goals and i wish you all the best!

Im dutch, and so far have only been laid off once. Unfortunatly, at the time I was working freelance, so I did not have regular protections. I was working "fake" freelance (only single customer, not multiple) and could have sued for benefits, but I work in a pretty good market and found a job through friends/colleagues within a month. In other positions once I had regular employment I've not been laid off, even when the company was troubled, since it was too much effort for them to set up so they just keep you on anyway.

The laws we have are indeed great, but there are extreme negative effects. You can literally work with a colleague who should be fired straight away, but if management or HR doesn't have the time for it... their employment will just continue and you will just have to live with their mistakes. And you will then have to correct their mistakes. It really stifles progress. Getting fired without a good reason should be unlawful, but the result is a lot of freeloaders, who barely do anything, but can't get fired.

as a dutch born and raised, i can tell you that if you wander into the UWV office with any form of a disabillity and you can get Wajong... Don't that system is rigged up too the eyeballs. Can't work ? here's 70% of minimum wage.. goodluck renting a house and surviving on that.. can work? sure how many hours can you manage... here's the bare minimum wage (since we pay x, your employer gets tax benefits and this benefit and that benefit) So all in all.. working doesn't actually 'pay' you decide to work more hours? you get 100 bucks before taxes and you lose 120 bucks disabillity payment.. talk about motivation to work... (not) For all the systems you 'praised' into the heavens.. half of them only 'work' when you know where to look and bend the rules as you go.. as soon as you have to enlist others to 'tell you' how stuff works.. our government will find that loophole and close it cause all the wealthy people who used that exact loophole have had their fill and moved on too the next tax evasion... The social system is buckled at the knees and its failing... slowly but surely..

My wife was lucky enough to be laid off in the US (Minnesota) while she was on maternity leave and was thus able to receive unemployment for one year while raising our son. I could include both of them on family health insurance. We called it “being laid off into Sweden”. Now that son is in graduate school in the Netherlands. How are we so fortunate?

Healthcare in NL is just not tied to your employment, it does not mean that some companies might compensate you for the premium. The biggest difference is that everyone gets to pay the same premium for the basic healthcare coverage that is already covering almost everything (discounts through employer are very minimal and you might still opt for insurance outside of employer plan as it could be cheaper). In the US insurance companies use employment as a way to get healthier people so they can offer affordable premiums. If you try get insurance without a job, the premium will be sky high. Insurance companies need to do this, because there is nothing to protect them from only the sick people getting insurance with them. That does not exist in NL because EVERYONE must be insured and is paying an affordable premium.

I worked 8 years for a company and was laid off. They had structural reorganizations every 18 months, and at round 6, my ticket popped up ( age just over 50, so another age group ). These were mass-laid offs with a minimum of 50 people company wide. In order to fulfill this criterion and the age distribution requirement, younger persons were hired beforehand. In order to prevent replacement within the company, job openings were hidden for those concerned. Your story hold true; I got 6 months of garden leave, and about 1 years gross salary. However, this was a lump sum within a year, and taxed against 58%. Most of the elder employees that lost their job faced a long or permanent period of unemployment. The management of this company was USA, and shareholder value was ( and probably still is ) their main concern.

I'm sorry to hear that you got laid off, David, especially around your birthday. That sucks. I also think that you're so very smart that it shouldn't take you too long to find work elsewhere. Best of luck to you. As for me, I've been living and working in education for 24 years in the Netherlands and have gone through several issues with this, which I'll briefly share. I also want to add that after five years I was allowed Dutch citizenship, which comes with extra perks as well. When I was young in the States I began teaching in secondary education then later moved on to the university level. But never having achieved tenure depressed me to the point that I left to teach internationally. When I moved to the Netherlands my US degrees were evaluated by Nuffik, which I believe has been since replaced by other selfsame agencies. Anyway, through them I was only granted to teach HBO, which also depressed me because I'd had my heart set on teaching at Leiden U or UvA (Amsterdam). Regardless, because my Dutch was almost nonexistent when I first moved here I began teaching at lower levels. This inadequacy I corrected and advanced to teach at higher levels, which I'd felt I was more suited for. Regardless, I was playing the contract game, meaning that according to Dutch law you can be hired under contract for two years, but your third year the company or organisation is required by law to offer you permanent employment. In other words, fully employed individuals are harder to get rid of. 😉Thus, the contract game, which is when a company will renew your contract for two years and then won't the third year because of then having to hire you permanently. I did this with three different schools, where one would hire me for two years and not the third, but their affiliate would pick me up for their two years and so on. Finally, the last educational organisation I worked for had HR convincing me that I would finally be permanently hired my third year with them. But guess what happened? Yes, the global market crash of 2008 that affected the worldwide market. So, I didn't get the permanent contract promised me entering my third year after all. Instead, I went through the 10,000 euro revalidation that you speak of in your podcast. However, I didn't personally receive 10,000 euros. Rather, a revalidation centre of my employer's choice did. And the worker assigned me took one look at my degrees and resume and said that, according to Dutch standards, I was suited for education and the government wouldn't be spending money on me being retrained for anything else. So, the money was pocketed and I was told to set up a solication schema. Gosh, was that advice worth 10,000 euros? 😝 Meanwhile, the government subsidised rent, insurances, etc. And I didn't go on bijstand, which another commenter suggests here, because I was married to a Dutchman who also worked. But bijstand is also possible for you, yes. And it is your right. So, happy severance! I'd also suggest that since our European weather is now improving for late spring/early summer, go travel and/or enjoy the beach before reapplying for work again! And then you can really have a happy birthday! 🎈

A family member of mine was going to get laid off after 20 years of working at the company. She escalated the layoff to the UWV and she eventually won. Lawyer fees paid for by the company. And she’s still working here, to this day. I didn’t realise how good we have it here until I heard stories about the US 😅

Shocked and Embarrassed! I watched your video when it was posted but it did not 'sink-in' that you were personally impacted by a lay-off until I watched your latest video. As a fellow Californian, your channel has been a source of inspiration for me as I methodically navigate my plan to set-up a home in the Netherlands in the near future. As you navigate this unplanned situation, I hope you can find the time to reset and regroup. Will you be coming back to California for a while to spend time with friends and family while planning for the next chapter in your career?

A key element of a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) is that it should be mutually set up. Meaning the plan needs to contain elements/input from both the employer and employee. Often this is not the case, the employer simply generates a PIP with, typically, unobtainable milestones and KPIs (designed to get rid of the employee). This PIP will not hold up in court, thus often works to the benefit of the employee.

0:35 That bitterbal is genius 🤣 Good luck with the job hunt though. Protection against lay-off hell may seem blissful compared to the American system. Some parties, like employer unions, state employers are more reluctant to hire people if layoffs are so expensive, and it may cause foreign companies to be hesitant to open up shop in The Netherlands. I'm curious about your perspective!

Got laid of for 'under performance'. The route they took was: They: 'You are under performing.' Me: 'OK, how do I improve?' They: 'You need to feel it... and you can always ask us for help!'. Me: 'Okay... So, can you help me? (No) Is that feedback system already up and running? (No) Do you have time to sit with me? (No) etc.' They: 'You are fired, you didn't improve and your could see this coming!' My lawyer: 'This severance package proves they have no proof and no documentation and they just want to get rid of you. Considering the amount, you're best off to accept it. But Employers... she's not going to work for the last 2 months, but will keep on having her pay.' Because of my lawyer and the amount of time I got, I was technically unemployed for 2 days. UWV was a bit annoying for a lot longer, demanding I found a second job for 4 hours a week...

A little extra note on unemployment benefits, there are some conditions you need to meet before you can get that money from the government. you need to have lived and worked 5 years in the netherlands and you need to be actively searching for a job. The government will stop paying you if they find out that you’re not actually searching for a job and just collecting unemployment. It’s in my opinion a great system and i still consider myself lucky for being born here. You pay your part of your salary to the government, they fund the needy ❤

You are very well protected in the Netherlands. Good to a certain extend but also challenging for companies. Imagine really having a bad functioning person. It is really expensive to get rid of such person. Calling in sick is often abused to prevent being kicked out. This might result in high pressure on the rest of the team. Or imagine having a small company then these additional cost can really have big impact on an organization. You might have to hire a second person while you only have 1 FTE.

about 10y ago I got fired for automating my job, which would make about 10 employees including myself obsolete. My boss told me it would be cheaper to fire me and to not implement it than to pay those 10 people their unemployment contracts. That math obviously doesn't check out but my point I guess is that there's a gray area here.

side note on healthcare, the nation does it as a collective but it's not free. Then there are discount collectives per company, which isn't extremely common, but most larger companies have it. Everybody pays but poor people get subsidies for it.

i live in the netherlands and i got layed off early this month and i've just been vibing looking for jobs it hasn't been that stresfull

Today, it can be quite a hassle to keep staff within a reasonable budget. Laying off isn't a theme, the unemployment levels are lower than published openings ... more openings per unemployed. It is a tight employment market these days.

Everything has pros and cons. Maybe it's harder to fire someone in Netherlands, but this has a lots of cons: potentially higher taxes (processing complaints from former employees by government offices or courts costs), potentially lower salaries (companies have to include extra "cost" of firing), potentially fewer investment and job opportunities (e.g. tech companies prefer lower-tax lower employee right countries like US, China, in EU Poland or Estonia is often chosen). And in those countries it's also pretty easy to be prepared for being fired: just save some of your salary for the rainy days, don't spend it all.

David- I enjoy your channel and hope you’ve landed on your feet. You enjoy life in the NL so it would be a shame to depart before you’re ready. ( an aside- I do chuckle a bit anytime someone in HR gets laid off. A bit of schadenfreude, no doubt).

I had a 1 year contract at the first company i worked at, they eventually decided not to give me a full time contract due to some communication issues which meant i was working on the wrong things for about half a year (which they somehow never noticed even though i updated them on what i was doing every single day), they were way too late with announcing i wouldn't be getting a full time contract (3 weeks before my contact ended instead of 2 months) so not only did they have to pay me 6 weeks of salary, they also had to pay for the 2 months of vacation days i had build up, in the end i got about 3 times my monthly salary and was paid to the end of the month rather than the end of the contract, not too bad overall

Technically I been laid off once, but that was because it was clear that the company and myself where no longer a good match as I had outgrown any jobs they could offer me. They could have been assholes about it and just shrugged and waited until I would unquestionably quit, but they wanted to offer me a nicer way out with an agreement which meant a severance pay for me, gardening leave and the ability to collect unemployment and while I didn't expect to need that part, I did end up signing all that 2 weeks before the world shut down because of covid so it saved me big time. Beyond that I always ended up either leaving on my own during my contract or when they expired.

workers council isn't something that can decide on the decisions of how and why letting people go. its more on an advise basis rather than a deciding factor.

You do not always get 90 days to search for a new job if you are on a visa, you will get it only if your residence permit hasn’t expired, which it does if the contract was signed for a one year for example (very typical), and the residence permit is given for the same amount of time. So when I was losing job for example, I almost got no time to search for another one.

Belgium is not like this with regards to letting someone go. They send you a registered letter. To my knowledge you can't negotiate. In Ireland it is very difficult to let someone go. You have to provide every possible chance to the person and often it is very difficult to the manager and the team.

If you’re laid off in NL, and you have a permanent residency card, DO NOT sign any agreement that says your layoff is upon your request. I don’t know if foreigners with a permanent residency status are entitled to unemployment benefits, but signing anything that states you requested to be laid off will make it you not qualify for unemployment at all. If you’re for any reason that was under your control, then unemployment is off the table anyway

Is the company allowed not to offer you a new contract if your 1-year contract, for example, expired, and do not pay for all these? IDK how it works but really curious.

Thanks for sharing your experience of living in Dutch. I was wonder is speaking the local language required to work and study in Dutch? How did learn to speak Dutch?

I'm Dutch, and your videos really help me to appreciate my own country more. I know Dutch people who want to leave because they think it's "boring" here. I'm not sure if most Dutch people know how good we have it here, we're a people who love to whine and complain.

Hey David, Really sad to hear about your situation. Keep up the good work and you will get through this. Although there is some benefit for people coming from the most developed countries for job in Netherlands and off course working for 5 years in a permanent job, this privilege is not available for many people. I am personally badly impacted by the complex “employer” friendly rules. I had worked in a temporary contract where i was assured for 10 months that i was performing well, until when time came for renewal of my contract after an year, I had been kicked out with only 2 months to find a new job coz my visa was tied with my employment. There is no law to protect people in one year contract to stay and get a job with sponsor in Netherlands and its a sad reality that people in such situations have to crush their dreams and goals and leave the Netherlands. With that all the hopes of feeling the Netherlands as home also crashes badly. David, if you ever get a time, please research and make a video to protect people who go to Netherlands with one year contract job and their contract are not renewed for some reason of the employers. I wish that noone goes through the pain that i had to face & protect many future souls having beautiful dreams in their eyes to live their lives and make it big in the Netherlands.❤

Do you have to leave the Netherlands when you get your benefits from the UWV and your visa is not sponsered? Because that's a payment from insurance and therefore still an income. After the period of your UWV unemployment-benefits ends people have to go to the city for a welfare income (Bijstand/Participatieuitkering). That's an income directly payed out of taxes and this can be refused to foreigners (depending on your situation).

Note: when want to finish dutch college, you're required to have an internship, lets say; if your intern employer fires you, you dont get the same help as normal work, instead you either do the schoolyear over again or you quit school. Moral story: internship sucks, just go for a job and even if you dislike job interviews, it still is better than being exploited on the intern job.

Excellent video David. Very good information. But you are not completely (or partly) right on the details. The notice period is not (always) set by the number of years but by contract or both. And a good compensation (rule of thumb when you end up in court) is you get paid a month of salary for every year you worked there, especially when you did not have a bad annual review, which gives you a good negotiation position. In case of a reorganization, you can go much further because your lay off is a way for them to make more money or loose less and you should not carry the burden of that. And do not forget to have them pay out your days off and other gravy you have a right to, even in future (some bonus, tantième, profit share are based on the previous financial year and are basically paid a year later; you don't loose the right to those either). Even when, for example, you go on 3 months (paid) garden leave, those 3 months you have a right to the above, including all social insurances. Most people forget about these completely and agree to a final settlement that excludes these. This might be a good time for you to move out of Amsterdam and experience the real Netherlands. I strongly suggest to orientate on the Eindhoven region where a lot of jobs on the International market are available (the region is becoming a Dutch silicone valley, without the mountains I mean) and Brabant is so, so, so much better to live in than the Randstad by far. Your costs of living will also reduce substantially. Myself, I been laid off a few times as well and never walked away with less than 6-12 months salary, apart from the bonusses and tantièmes. Like you said, do not agree with their (first few) proposals and don't hesitate to openly discuss going to court if their proposals are not satisfactory, specially when you never received a bad (annual) review or they didn't provide any indication. The court will look at all these things but also the fact that you are a foreigner that will end up in a bad situation (and the employer is (or needs to be) aware of that). They took the responsibility of hiring a foreigner and have to accept the consequences that it will cause visa problems and/or relocation expenses of some sort. They cannot wave their responsibility by trying to be the judge and jury in their own court. These "rules of thumb" as described above and the reason why the company decides to lay you off for are a huge consideration to the court. The company knows all this and will push you to the max but are totally aware of what a court would decide and have to cave in eventually, not risking having to pay all the legal costs and damages they (might) cause when the outcome is basically always the same in the Netherlands. Even in case you have a 1 year contract, for example, and they want to lay you off after 6 months, they have to pay out the full value of the contract, since the risk for the company is already limited to the duration of that contract that is solely a benefit to them and not to you.

To compare being fired in the U.S. and the Netherlands, you'd have to address the specifics of each U.S. state. Laws vary across different states.

Bank gave me a big bag of money, to get rid of me after 23 years (normal amount after such a long time). I would have preferred a job fit for my skills and the correct pay, but they refused both. They also paid for outplacement (because mandated by law). Very weird vibes and lots of frustration in those online meeting (due to covid). Luckily I was between jobs for only 3 weeks.

It's not all that great in the Netherlands. I've had an employee who would be late for work at least 3 times per week, sabotaging the work when no one was watching and had extremely bad hygiene which had a negative effect on other employees and also bad for our reputation towards our customers. We had to let him go because he was damaging the company and it still had to came to an agreement in court, which resulted in him getting a month worth of salary for free. It was still less damaging than letting him stay in the company and continue to sabotage it but it's just not right. Employees are extremely protected in the Netherlands which was a good thing when the laws where written. Years ago it was hard to find a job and employers would take advantage of it. These days it's the other way around. It's easy to find a job but hard to find employees so employees will take advantage of employers which can be extremely harmfull for small businesses. Work ethic has gone down the drain over the last few years. Employees can demand everything while giving nothing, destroy a company and get a new job within a day because every company has a hard time finding people.

Have you done a video about getting your first job in the netherlands? I’m an American looking for work rn in the country

When you're laid off in the Netherlands, you're covered for 2 years of unemployment. First year, you'll be paid out 100% of your salary (not sure what the cap is, but the average income is easily covered), then after 1 year, you get another year of payment, only this year it's 70%.

I only had 2 jobs. 1 was part time, I quite on my own. The other one is full time which i have been doing for 15 years now. I never got fired from a job.

Sorry to hear you lost your job, hope you find a new one in the Netherlands ->> I would be sad to miss your RU-vid video's about this country!

Yup US company was going under. Companies come and go. Every year it's like ticking time bomb of bankruptsy.

nver laid off, just be aware there is a maximum of employnet benefit in NL. It is not 75% of your salary but that salary is maximized.

once i was working for a company with a permanent contract but i felt very unhappy there. when i came to the conclusion that the problems are not solvable i got in contact and asked if we could agree on a contract to stop the employment. So both parties agreed that there is no good in continuing. meaning i could get UWV unemployment benefits because i did not quit (you wont get those benefits if you quit your job yourself) and that company also offered me to pay me 7000 euro on my last day. all without a lawsuit.

Very interesting video in South Africa as soon as you get a job say a month later and still trying to get your UFI money from the government you lose it. They will not give you the money for that as you now have a job. So if you are without a job for a month and the UIF process is so long and hard to get help it will take longer than you have time to do it.

Good luck with finding a new job. I don't know your specialty but the job market is still going strong at the moment. Getting a company to be your sponsor could be harder. Small companies don't want to do all the paperwork. Please keep us posted. If you have a relationship with a Dutch person he/she could be your sponsor so you have more time to find a new job.

Huh, this is wildly different from what happens here in Flanders

By the way, in Belgium, if they want you to sign, don't. You are not required to sign anything. You don't know what you are agreeing to. And join a union. Ik you loose your job in Belgium, the union will take care of the administration

My father could prove his boss let him go unlawfully and he won, they had to pay him 60k. I have also gone through the process but they handled it in a very nasty way so that sucked. I could have gotten more out of it but the social contacts were completely damaged beyond repair. Learned a lot about the process and my rights though. And I might not have gotten much (3k I believe), I took the boss his daughter with me (who was supposed to take over the company) because she didn't like how it was handled. She hasn't returned since, it's been 10 yrs ago. Oh and another guy who was really good at coding and was definitely underpaid - he found a job that paid him double soon after - I consider it a win.

Is it Christmas already? Wow, 2024 really went by fast. My calendar is still in April.