Before the 1st of October
Before 1 October 2016 the Works Council only had a right of consent with regard to the intended decision of the employer to establish or revoke a pension agreement that is administered by a company pension fund. This meant that the amendment of a pension agreement was possible without the consent of the Works Council.
After the 1st of October
Starting the 1st of October the Works Council obtained additional powers. Firstly, the consent of the Works Council is now required for every intended decision with regard to the establishment, amendment or revocation of a pension agreement, irrespective of the pension administrator. An exception to this is when the agreement is already provided for in a collective labor agreement (CLA) or in case that a mandatory industry-wide pension fund applies. Secondly the Works Council has the right of consent concerning provisions of the execution agreement (uitvoeringsovereenkomst) that will have a direct impact on the pension agreement as well as the choice of the employer to switch to another (foreign or not) pension administrator (pensioenuitvoerder).
Despite the fact that some uncertainties with respect to the scope of the right of consent persist, we consider the implemented changes a useful step forward. After all, not only employers but also employees are responsible for the employment conditions with respect to pensions. Hence, it is important that they can influence the decision making process.
