Inequality on the Dutch labour market

By Bastiaan Starink - people & organisation specialist PwC.

One of the key themes in the Dutch labour market today is the high degree of inequality between different groups: age, gender and ethnic/cultural background create unequal opportunities and access to work. Among the most vulnerable groups are older workers, migrants from non-western countries, females and part-time workers. How will it be in 2030?

Recently, two ‘inequality at work’ topics have again received much media attention: first, the top to average worker pay ratio; and secondly, the gender pay gap, i.e. equal pay for work of equal value. New reporting rules (re. pay ratio) and draft legislation (re. equal pay for men and women) caused the increase in media coverage. But inequality in connection with the labour market is of all times. What is the world of work going to look like in 2030? And how will the current inequalities in the labour market develop over time? These issues are discussed detail in our new publication ‘Future of work 2030 - A wake-up call for organisations, people and government’.

Trends, opportunities or threat

Unemployment, social exclusion, inequality and poverty lie at the heart of people's concerns for the future. Currently, various megatrends concur and accelerate, picking up speed: technological breakthroughs, demographic changes, flexibilisation of work and urbanisation. The concurrence of these trends gives rise to new work and business opportunities for many but also poses a threat to others. This may increase inequality in society between those who can cope with change and those who cannot, between first movers with entrepreneurial spirit and late movers with risk-averse minds, between winners and losers. Inequality in the labour market of the future has many faces. It is a crosscutting theme at all education levels and in all industries.

It is very likely that technological developments in particular will increase the inequalities in society en lead to job and income insecurity for many.

Take up the challenges together

We call upon organisations, people and government to take up the challenges together. These are some of the ‘possible solutions and calls to action’:

Make work contracts and pay systems more flexible;
Widen the definition of pension;
Empower individuals to take the lead;
Take lifelong learning and development a step further; and
(to the Dutch government): Lead by example, create an international level playing field and align proposals to reform laws and regulations with other countries.

How do we prepare for the future of work?

The pace of change in world of work is accelerating. Competition for the right talent is fierce. And ‘talent’ no longer means the same as ten years ago. Many of the roles, skills and job titles of tomorrow are unknown to us today. How can organisations prepare for a future that few of us can define? How can people shape their own careers and take ownership for their learning needs? How can the Dutch government develop a robust vision on the future of work in the Netherlands and take the lead in creating an international level playing field with respect to a common approach to the big future of work themes?

This isn’t a time to sit back and wait for events to unfold. To be prepared for the future, organisations, people and the government of the Netherlands should rise above their own interests and work in close cooperation to improve the prospects for all, i.e. not only the highly educated tech-savvy knowledge workers but also those who cannot manage, the potential ‘have-nots’ of the future.

Download our report ‘Future of work 2030 - NL’

_{*This is the second blog of a series of four based on the publication 'The future of work 2030 - a wake-up call for organisations, people and government' by PwC People & Organisation. Earlier we published our vision on the revitalisation of the labour market.The key themes flexibility and technology will be discussed in the next two blogs. Download the full report here.}