In the autumn of 2006, the chair of the Social and Economic Council expressed his support for the idea of anonymous job applications, in an effort to further diversify the workforce and to combat discrimination against ethnic minorities and older workers. A pilot project in relation to anonymous job applications is currently being monitored in one municipality. In addition, the Labour Party has submitted a plan of action containing proposals directed at activating diversity policy. While the Dutch Trade Union Federation views such initiatives favourably, it also recognises that the responsibility for decisions related to the recruitment of employees ultimately rests with the employers.
In the autumn of 2006, the Chair of the Social and Economic Council (Sociaal-Economische Raad, SER), Alexander Rinnooy Kan, confirmed his support for anonymous job applications, in an effort to further diversify the workforce. In this way, the chair of the most significant socioeconomic government advisory body hopes to contribute to combating discrimination against ethnic minorities and older job applicants.
SER proposals
Mr Rinnooy Kan believes that, by showing potential employers information related to only the last 15 years of an applicant’s employment history, their age will not be disclosed. Moreover, the applicant’s surname could also be omitted, so that people with a non-Dutch surname would not be recognised.
According to the SER chair, a company’s workforce should reflect the composition of society. Mr Rinnooy Kan believes that such an approach is ultimately in the interests of the business community as well. The Netherlands’ growing multicultural society has brought new customers as well as new employees to the market. In his proposal, Mr Rinnooy Kan referred to earlier initiatives in France, where some experience had been gained with respect to anonymous job applications and where pilot projects are currently being conducted in this area in some companies. While new legislation has been proposed in France, it seems unlikely that it will be implemented in practice.
Pilot initiative
In September 2006, the local council of Nijmegen in the east of the Netherlands decided to introduce an anonymous job application process on a trial basis, involving three of the six municipal executives. The central human resources department have to remove the dates of birth and surnames of applicants from job application letters, before passing them on to the executive bodies concerned. Since cases of discrimination are difficult to establish, the municipality hopes to prevent such cases from occurring in the first place. In conducting the trial process, the municipality also hopes to serve as an example of good practice to others. As the local council was divided about the initial proposal, it was only agreed to on condition that the trial will be evaluated in the near future. The council is unique in introducing such a pilot project. On the whole, employers support a company policy on diversity; however, the implementation of measures such as anonymous job applications has not won their support.
Labour Party proposals
Within the context of the elections that were due to take place on 22 November 2006, the Labour Party (Partij van de Arbeid, PvdA) presented its intentions in this policy area. In October 2006, the party presented its proposed plan, entitled ‘The shop floor belongs to everyone’, to Mr Rinnooy Kan, the SER chair. The PvdA has proposed the imposition of an immediate fine of €8,000 on employers in cases of discrimination. The party also wants the government to award assignments only to organisations with a sound diversity policy. Moreover, it proposes that, in the future, employers who advertise for shelf-packers aged 16 to 19 years should be fined instantly. The PvdA would like to see the Labour Inspectorate and the Public Prosecutor taking tougher action more frequently in relation to such issues. The government could also serve as an example in this respect, by ensuring that its workforce, at all levels, reflects the general composition of society. At present, some 16% of the Dutch population have a disability, while only 4% of civil servants reflect this reality. Assigning one structural trainee arrangement for every 40 positions could be one way of promoting the increased labour force participation of women, people of foreign extraction and disabled people. In addition to more focused policy for organisations dependant on national government, such as the Centre for Work and Income (Centrum voor Werk en Inkomen, CWI), the PvdA contends that the business community should also take its own steps to enhance diversity. For example, making companies accountable for their diversity policies in their annual reports should become compulsory. The business community needs to recognise that diversity is not only desirable for society at large, but that it is also profitable: according to the PvdA, diversity stimulates creativity and is good for the overall market.
FNV position
The Dutch Trade Union Federation (Federatie Nederlandse Vakbeweging, FNV) has not yet formulated a definitive position on the proposal put forward by Mr Rinnooy Kan and on the plans of the PvdA, but obviously supports any concrete proposals directed at protecting vulnerable groups in the labour market. However, it realises that the trade union movement has only limited influence over the acceptance of policy, since it is the employers who will make the final decision in this respect.
Marianne Grünell, Hugo Sinzheimer Institute (HSI)