In February 2026, the Labour Court ruled that an employer’s decision to unilaterally abolish the contractual payment of a 13th cheque to its employee amounted to a breach of contract. The court emphasised the trite position that contractual obligations are not optional and cannot be mischaracterised as a workplace practice to avoid obligatory fulfilment.
NSW Parliament passes Digital Work Systems Bill: what employers need to know
The NSW Parliament has narrowly passed the Work Health and Safety Amendment (Digital Work Systems) Bill 2025, introducing the most significant update to the State’s WHS framework in more than a decade. The reforms, an Australian first, respond to the rapid expansion of AI‑enabled management tools, algorithmic scheduling, digital surveillance technologies and automated decision‑making systems
Labour Appeal Court clarifies the treatment of plea bargain agreements in disciplinary proceedings
In a January 2026 judgment, the Labour Appeal Court clarified the effect of a plea bargain agreement within internal workplace disciplinary process. Although such agreements are a useful and accepted feature of labour relations, they do not necessarily bind disciplinary chairpersons, and mishandling them can render a dismissal procedurally unfair.
Although more commonplace in
New rules for temporary agency workers and employment agencies
The new collective Labour agreement (CLA) for temporary agency workers took effect on 1 January 2026. From that date, agency workers are entitled to employment conditions equivalent to those of employees of the hirer in comparable positions. This goes significantly further than the previous hirer’s remuneration rules and aligns with the objectives of the draft
OECD 2025 update
The OECD has published the 2025 update of the Model Tax Convention (MTC) and its accompanying Commentary. This update contains tightened guidelines on the concept of a permanent establishment, particularly in situations where employees work cross‑border and remotely.
When a company has a permanent establishment in another country, this can have consequences for corporate income
Supreme Court: temporary agency work must truly be temporary
The Dutch Supreme Court has recently confirmed that temporary agency work must, by definition, have a temporary nature, as required by the European Temporary Agency Work Directive. This ruling is significant for organisations that deploy agency workers for long periods: a general need for flexibility is insufficient to justify prolonged use of agency workers.
The
Draft bill: reporting obligation for labour providers in case of workplace accidents
The draft bill Act on Introducing a Reporting and Verification Duty for Labour Providers in Case of Workplace Accidents is currently under consideration in the Parliament. The proposal follows two reports on the living and working conditions of labour migrants, which included recommendations to strengthen the structural position of this group. One of the proposed
New Labour Intermediation Admission Act combats rogue employment agencies
On 11 November 2025, the Dutch Senate approved the Labour Intermediation Admission Act (Wet toelating terbeschikkingstelling arbeidskrachten). This law aims to combat rogue employment agencies and improve the protection of workers – especially Labour migrants. The Act amends the Waadi and introduces a mandatory licensing system for all organisations that supply workers, including
No pay transparency reporting in The Netherlands in 2026
On 26 March 2025, the government published a draft bill to implement the European Pay Transparency Directive (EU 2023/970). The Directive, which has been in force since 6 June 2023, must be transposed into national legislation by all member states. Its aim is to strengthen equal pay between men and women by providing greater insight
Personnel Retention in Times of Crisis Act
On 26 September 2025, the Dutch government submitted the Personnel Retention in Times of Crisis Act (Wet personeelsbehoud bij crisis) to the Council of State for review. The Act is intended to help employers retain staff during unexpected crises – such as pandemics, wars or natural disasters – so that layoffs can be