Employment discrimination

This concerns distinctions based on:

• origin
• gender
• sexual orientation
• age
• disability or chronic illness
• politica! affiliation
• employment relationship (full-time or part-time)
• employment contract (permanent or temporary)
• marital status
• nationality
• religion
• beliefs

Employment discrimination falls under the category of psychosocial workload. Employment discrimination can lead to work-related stress and absenteeism and ultimately to long-term sick leave and possibly even incapacity for work. Employees who experience employment discrimination become demotivated. lf they take sick leave, the step back to work is even more difficult. This is a very unpleasant situation for the employee. And it costs you, the employer, a lot of money.

What can you do to combat employment discrimination?

As an employer, you must establish a policy to combat employment discrimination. This is required under the Working Conditions Act. lf you fail to do so, the Netherlands Labour Authority may take measures. Ultimately, you could even face heavy fines.

You develop policies against employment discrimination on the basis of the Risk lnventory & Evaluation in which you describe the situations in which your employees may face discrimination. Examples of measures against employment discrimination:

• appointing a confidential advisor
• informing your employees about employment discrimination
• where necessary, conducting further investigations while ensuring anonymity
• drawing up a code of conduct and a complaints procedure

Read more about what you can do to combat employment discrimination (Dutch) in the workplace at arboportaal.nl.

Self-inspection: Bullying, discrimination and (sexual) harassment

Are you doing enough to combat employment discrimination, bullying and (sexual) harassment? Use the Work pressure and undesirable behaviour self-inspection tool (Dutch).

Discrimination and human rights

The Netherlands lnstitute for Human Rights monitors human rights in the Netherlands, conducts research, advises and assesses individual cases of discrimination. More information can be found at mensenrechten.nl.

Discrimination on the labour market

You strive for a fair recruitment and selection process in which everyone has equal opportunities. Nevertheless, it is possible that you may unconsciously fail to give every candidate equal opportunities. To a greater or lesser extent, stereotypes and prejudices are part of how we all think, feel and act. How can you prevent stereotyping and prejudice as much as possible? Complete the checklist (Dutch), discover the risks of discrimination in the recruitment and selection process, and learn how to prevent them!