How do I handle public holidays as an employer?

In the Netherlands, there is no law that entitles employees to public holidays off. Whether an employee is entitled to time off—and whether continued payment of wages or a supplement applies—is determined by the collective labour agreement (CAO), the employment contract, or the personnel regulations. As an employer, you must therefore know which CAO applies to you; even a deviating agreement in the employment contract takes precedence.

April and May are full of public holidays, and the other months have them too. However, employees are not automatically entitled to a day off — the applicable collective labour agreement is the determining factor. We explain.

What types of holidays are there?

• National holidays: King's Day and Liberation Day.
• Generally recognized public holidays: New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Ascension Day, Whit Monday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
• Non-recognized holidays: for example, Eid al-Fitr or Hanukkah.

No law, but still little freedom

Unlike in some countries, no Dutch law stipulates that employees are entitled to time off on specific public holidays. However, as an employer, you cannot simply decide on your own not to grant a day off. The employment contract may state that the employee is entitled to that day off—even for a non-recognized public holiday such as Eid al-Fitr, which is then a paid extra day of leave.

If nothing is stipulated in the employment contract, a collective labour agreement (CLA) or personnel regulations may still grant the right to a day off; a CLA even takes precedence over the employment contract. If neither the CLA, the employment contract, nor the regulations mandate a day off, you are not required to grant one (though you may do so voluntarily). It is therefore essential to know under which industry-wide CLA you fall.

Collective labour agreements (CBAs) are often similar: employees are usually off on national and generally recognized public holidays. An exception is Liberation Day, which often only provides a day off in a jubilee year (such as 2020 or 2025). Some CBAs allow employees to exchange a recognized public holiday for a non-recognized one, for example, Boxing Day for Eid al-Fitr.

Continued payment of wages and allowances

Because the law does not regulate public holidays, this also applies to continued payment of wages and allowances — which are stipulated in the collective labour agreement (CLA). In all CLAs, the employee is entitled to continued payment of wages if an official public holiday falls on a day on which they would normally work. In most CLAs, an allowance of 50 to 100% applies to those who *do* work on a public holiday. Deviating agreements remain possible.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to give my staff time off on public holidays?

Not by law, but often by virtue of the collective labor agreement, employment contract, or personnel regulations. If none of these mandate the day off, then you do not have to grant it.

Is there a surcharge for working on a public holiday?

The law does not regulate this, but most collective labour agreements provide for a surcharge of 50 to 100% for working on a public holiday. Check your collective labour agreement for the exact regulations.

Does the collective labour agreement take precedence over the employment contract?

Yes, an applicable collective labour agreement takes precedence on this point. It is therefore important to know under which industry-wide collective labour agreement you fall.

Properly arranging holidays in your employment terms

The employment lawyers at MKB Juristen help you incorporate public holidays, continued payment of wages, and allowances into the employment contract or personnel regulations. View our expertise in employment law or schedule a free intake consultation .