Study fees

Employee training and education

Employers are expected to invest in their employees to ensure that they can continue to perform their work optimally and develop their skills. Employees are entitled to the training necessary to perform their job and remain in service. The lack of necessary training that the employer should have provided cannot be a reason for dismissal. This is enshrined in law.

Compulsory training

Employers are obliged to enable their employees to follow training that is necessary for the performance or continuation of their job. Working time must also be made available for this. In other words, the training must be able to be followed during working hours. So what training is compulsory? In any case, all training that is required by law or a collective labour agreement. But also a compulsory annual certificate, safety training, language course or further training required by a trade union for professional competence or compulsory training in the context of reintegration or an improvement programme.

Study costs

The costs of this compulsory training are fully borne by the employer and, since August 2022, may no longer be passed on to the employee. These costs may include registration fees for the training institute, tuition fees, study materials and travel expenses. Ultimately, the employer should benefit from the employee’s increased knowledge and skills. However, employers are concerned, and not without reason, that the employee will leave for another employer or start their own business shortly after the training, meaning that all those costs will have been incurred for nothing.

Under Dutch law, compulsory training must be offered free of charge and take place during working hours as much as possible. A study costs clause with a repayment arrangement is not valid for compulsory training.

Invalid study costs clause

To prevent the employer from seeing this investment go up in smoke, a study costs clause has been agreed with many employees, stating that employees must repay (part of) the study costs when they leave the company. However, please note that since 1 August 2022, all study cost clauses relating to compulsory training are null and void. This means that these study cost clauses are simply no longer valid and the employer can no longer invoke them, even if they were agreed upon before 2022.

Exception

A study cost clause may still be agreed upon for non-compulsory training. For example, if an employee takes a course on their own initiative that is not directly related to their job. Or if it concerns a diploma that the employee was already required to have at the start of their employment. A so-called professional qualification. Such as having a C driving licence to be able to perform the job of truck driver.

Conditions for a valid study costs clause

For this last category of training, a repayment arrangement may be entered into. It is then agreed that if the employee leaves the company before completing the training, or within a certain period thereafter, they must repay all or part of the study costs to the employer. A study costs clause must meet the following conditions in order to be valid.

• It must be determined after what period the employee is free from the repayment obligation. (In other words, when the employer has benefited sufficiently from the training.)
• It must be established that the employee must repay the study costs in full if the employment contract ends during the training or immediately after completion of the training.
• During the agreed period, a repayment arrangement must be agreed with a sliding scale. The amount to be repaid must decrease in proportion to the length of employment after completion of the training.
• The repayment arrangement must not result in the employee being left with less than the minimum wage.
• Due to the serious financial consequences for the employee, these agreements must be laid down in writing.
• If the employer terminates the employment relationship on its own initiative, it may be considered unreasonable under certain circumstances to recover the study costs from the employee.

Frequently asked questions / FAQs about compulsory training

What happens if an employee refuses to participate in compulsory training?

If an employee refuses to participate in compulsory training without good reason, this may have consequences under employment law. These may include an official warning or even dismissal in the long term. The obligation to participate in training is part of good employment practices (Section 7:611 of the Dutch Civil Code), and refusal can be seen as refusal to work. It is important that employers clearly state which training is compulsory and what the consequences are for refusal, so that they have a solid basis for any follow-up measures.

Advice

If you are planning to draw up a study costs clause for an employee, or if you want to reclaim an employee’s study costs, first assess whether the training is compulsory or not. Seek proper advice on this matter.

Authors: Employment law solicitors Judy Sliepen and Myrddin van Westendorp