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Employment in Groningen
Groningen has spent a decade absorbing structural rather than cyclical job loss - the wind-down of gas extraction and the contraction of the supply chain built around it - alongside a large university, academic hospital and public sector that restructure in waves. The result is a labour market where redundancies arrive collectively rather than individually, which is exactly the setting where the statutory selection rule does the most work and where the difference between a genuine reorganisation and one designed around particular individuals is most worth testing.
Common employment problems in Groningen
The UWV permit comes first
For economic redundancy the employer must obtain a dismissal permit before giving notice, showing the redundancy is necessary, the role genuinely disappears and you cannot reasonably be redeployed. You are entitled to respond to that application.
The employer does not choose who goes
Selection follows the afspiegelingsbeginsel: employees in interchangeable roles are grouped by age bracket and redundancies distributed proportionally, with last-in-first-out inside each bracket.
Whether roles are genuinely interchangeable
This is the most common point of failure. An employer that narrows a role definition until only one person occupies it is doing something visible, and it is contestable.
Collective redundancy obligations
Where enough employees are affected within a set period, separate notification and consultation obligations apply, involving trade unions and the works council. Skipping them has consequences.
Fixed-term contracts in the university sector
Research and teaching staff on successive contracts should check the chain rule before accepting that a contract has simply ended.
Where a case would be heard
North Netherlands District Court
Rechtbank Noord-Nederland
Sits at: Guyotplein 1, Groningen
Economic redundancy runs through UWV rather than the court. The district court becomes relevant for related claims and for challenging the outcome.
How finding a lawyer in Groningen works
FindLawyer is a matching service operated by Leadvise Legal B.V., which is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. You send your situation and documents, FindLawyer reviews them and tells you honestly whether involving a lawyer is worth it, and if it is, introduces an independent English-speaking employment lawyer.
The lawyer decides whether to accept the matter, confirms their own fees and provides all legal advice. Any FindLawyer fee is explained before you decide anything, and the initial 15-minute matching call is free.
Read this first
Redundancy for economic reasons in Groningen
Your employer needs permission before it can make you redundant, and the selection rule is prescribed by law.
Read the full explanationEmployment law in Groningen: common questions
Can my employer just make me redundant?
Not on economic grounds. It must obtain a dismissal permit from UWV first, showing the redundancy is necessary, that the role disappears and that you cannot reasonably be redeployed. You can respond to that application.
How is it decided who is made redundant?
By the afspiegelingsbeginsel. Employees in interchangeable roles are grouped by age bracket and redundancies distributed proportionally across them, with last-in-first-out within each bracket. The employer does not select freely.
Do I still get severance if I am made redundant?
Yes. The transition payment is owed from your first day of employment - one third of a gross monthly salary per year of service, capped for 2026 at €102,000 gross or one gross annual salary if higher.
Which UWV office handles it?
One of five regional offices under the Besluit werkgebieden UWV 2024. For economic redundancy it follows where you perform the work; for long-term incapacity it follows where you live.
Need an employment lawyer in Groningen?
FindLawyer reviews your documents, tells you honestly whether involving a lawyer is worth it, and selects a suitable independent lawyer if it is. The 15-minute matching call is free.
No obligation. Any FindLawyer fee is explained before you decide. The lawyer decides whether to accept the matter, confirms their own fees and provides all legal advice.
Employment law in other cities
- WageningenAgri-food research - fixed-term international contracts and the 30% ruling.
- AmsterdamScale-ups, international HQs and finance - where settlement agreements and restructurings dominate.
- The HagueInternational institutions and NGOs - a city that runs on fixed-term contracts and project funding.
Last reviewed 14 August 2026.