Rules for minus hours worked?

Questioner

I work in maternity care. I am ending this year with 90 minutes of work, which was caused by being sick for 3 weeks. My manager did not put me on 'sick' at the time, which meant I did not work any hours. It was also caused by incorrect deployment. With my contract, I should have been given a 49-hour workweek. This has often been 37 hours. This also caused the minus hours to increase. My employer wants me to make up for my minus hours in the first quarter of 2024 and possibly compensate the minus hours with leave. In previous years, it was always the case that my minus hours were waived at the end of the year. My contract does not mention anything about minus hours. On the internet, if there is nothing about this, I read that the hours are waived at the end of the year. My employer refuses to think along and says that this is the correct procedure. They want me to make up for it and threaten to garnish wages if I do not make up my hours. Can you tell me what my rights are?

Lawyer

First of all, being sick is not a reasonable reason to generate minus hours. If you were unable to work due to illness, the employer should have reported you sick and you would in principle be entitled to 70% of your salary, unless your contract or collective labor agreement states otherwise. In addition, there are specific rules regarding working hours in your contract. If your contract states that you have a 49-hour workweek, but you regularly only work 37 hours, this can lead to a conflict. This depends very much on the reason why you work fewer hours and how this has been communicated. The question about waiving minus hours is complicated. In general, in the Netherlands, minus hours can be settled at the end of the year if they have arisen through standardized schedules and time measurement, but this can differ per employer. This depends on the policy of the organization and what is stated in your contract or collective labor agreement. In case of disagreement with your employer, we advise you to contact a lawyer or specialized attorney. They can assist you with legal disputes or negotiations. You can also contact the union if you are involved. The threat to garnish wages sounds serious, but the employer cannot do this without the intervention of a judge. However, ignoring such warnings is usually not the best course of action. All in all, this is a complicated issue and it is advisable to seek professional legal advice.'---------------- Stichting Rechtswinkel.nl is a national organization with students and volunteers. The above advice is based on limited information and may be incomplete or even incorrect for your situation. Always consult a lawyer or attorney for your further steps. Read disclaimer: https://rechtswinkel.nl/disclaimer I would like to invite you to rate the above answer so that we can learn from your response.