Allowances

Types of allowances

• Performance bonus

  If an employee’s performance exceeds expectations, a performance bonus may be granted. This may be the case, for example, if an employee structurally performs several substantial duties corresponding to a position with a higher salary scale.  

  In principle, the allowance is granted for the duration of one year. In the event that exceptional circumstances apply, the allowance may be awarded for a longer period of time, but always with an end date.   

  The performance bonus can be fixed or one-off. 

• Labour market-related bonus / acquisition and retention allowance

  For reasons of mobility, recruitment or retention, an employee may be granted a labour market-related bonus. This is also known as the acquisition and retention allowance. The allowance can be used for positions where staff is hard to come by and salaries are significantly higher in the commercial sector.  

  The allowance is granted for a fixed period. After this expires, the allowance may be renewed for a fixed period if the reasons of mobility, recruitment or retention still exist.  

  This allowance can be fixed or one-off. 

• Bonus for temporary substitution

  If an employee is commissioned by a manager to substitute for a position that is remunerated according to a higher salary scale and the employee holds this position for more than 30 consecutive days, a bonus for temporary substitution may be awarded for the duration of the substitution.  

  In case of a fully deputised position, the amount of the allowance is equal to the difference between the employee’s salary and the higher salary scale corresponding to the deputised position. For partially deputised positions, the manager awards the allowance pro rata the scope of the substitution.  

  This allowance can be fixed or one-off. 

• Bonus for other reasons / personal allowance

  This allowance is awarded at the discretion of the manager in cases where the existing allowances that are awarded for specific reasons do not apply to the particular situation of the employee or group of employees.

  The allowance can be fixed or one-off. 

• Allowance for work at unsociable hours

  To an employee who is commissioned to perform work that is not classified as overtime, the manager may grant an allowance for work at unsociable hours. The employee in question must be support staff and be paid in a lower salary scale than scale 11.

  The extra compensation amounts, per hour worked, to a percentage of the employee’s prevalent hourly salary: 40% for the hours between 0.00 and 7.00 and between 20.00 and 00.00 on Monday to Friday, as well as for the hours on Saturdays; 75% for the hours on Sundays and public holidays.

• Allowance for on-call and standby shifts / irregular working hours allowance

  To employees who are regularly (or fairly regularly) required, by written order of the manager, to be on call and available outside regular working hours to perform work if so requested, the manager may grant an allowance for on-call and standby shifts. This is also known as the irregular working hours allowance. The employee in question must be support staff and be paid in a lower salary scale than scale 11.

• Board membership allowance

  This allowance is granted mainly to university administrators, portfolio holders, chiefs, directors and deans. It is awarded on an individualised basis in terms of the amount, duration and accompanying conditions.  

• Allowance for reimbursement of non-taxable expenses

  In rare cases, the manager may award the employee a reimbursement of non-taxable expenses that are borne by the faculty or service department. The HR Advisor can be contacted for more information.

  Please note: this reimbursement does not count towards the holiday allowance, end-of-year bonus and pension base. 

• Allowance for extra reimbursement of travel expenses

  This allowance can only be awarded in very rare cases. The HR Advisor can be contacted for more information.

  Please note: this reimbursement does not count towards the holiday allowance, end-of-year bonus and pension base. 

• Allowance for net reimbursement of telephone expenses

  If an employee requires a mobile phone for their duties, VU Amsterdam will typically provide the employee with a mobile phone and subscription. Notwithstanding this, in very exceptional cases, the manager may decide to award a net allowance for telephone expenses.

  Please note: this reimbursement does not count towards the holiday allowance, end-of-year bonus and pension base. 

• In-house emergency response allowance

  Employees who participate in in-house emergency response activities receive an allowance for this. This allowance is not arranged using the self-service option, but processed centrally by the HRMAM service department in the personnel information system.

  Participating in activities in the context of in-house emergency response (page available in Dutch only) is possible if the employee has a contract with VU Amsterdam for at least 0.6 FTE and has permission from their manager. 

  Within VU Amsterdam, in-house emergency response officers work in three different positions: 

  • Evacuation warden
  • First aid provider 
  • Member of the VU-rapid Intervention Team (VURIT)

  More information can be found in the regulations on the in-house emergency response allowance (available in Dutch only).

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