Legal Advice on Salary Problems | Legal Advice Centre

Questioner

Good evening: I signed my contract without paying attention to whether my salary was correct. Now it turns out that it is not correct and I earn approx. 700 Euro gross per month too little. I discussed this with my manager and I am the only one who gets 2 extra periods instead of 8 periods and I also do not get my actual salary retroactively for the past 8 months. Is this allowed?

Lawyer

If you can prove that this is a mistake, then that is not allowed. For example, via a collective labor agreement or comparable salaries. In that case, I would write a letter to your WGR and point this out. If it does not work and you are convinced that you are right, then you can always contact me.

Lawyer

Question 1 is whether a collective labor agreement applies? If so, has it been declared generally binding? If so, then you are entitled to the collective labor agreement salary. This also applies when the employment contract refers to the collective labor agreement. If there is no CAO, is it a mistake? Yes, then the employer must correct it. If this is done deliberately by the employer, then you are out of luck and I advise you to find another employer as soon as possible.

Questioner

Yes, a collective labor agreement for VVT and general has been declared binding. No, it is not a deliberate mistake but a mistake, They will come up with the answer that I signed the contract consciously or unconsciously. What can I say in response then? Mistake? Should the employer correct it retroactively?

Lawyer

Yes, that can be grounds for summary dismissal. Someone was recently dismissed because she had not put 0.50 Euro cents in the tip jar. Someone was also recently dismissed because he had eaten a bag of cashew nuts. The judge approved both dismissals. You are also taking a risk with your behavior. I would definitely leave it at that one time. You can do two things now. The first option is to hope that it does not come out. The second option is to confess honestly before the employer finds out. In that case, you may get away with a warning and have to pay back the money. What the employer does will also depend on your position and how (dis)satisfied the employer is with you. In the event of summary dismissal, especially in the event of fraud, the UWV will most likely refuse unemployment benefits.

Lawyer

On the one hand it will depend on what exactly is in the CAO (there are approx. 1,000 in the Netherlands) and on the other hand the employer cannot simply hide behind your signature. After all, both parties have made a mistake.