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Joint Statement on the association of the United Kingdom and Switzerland to Horizon Europe
With this Joint Statement, we – the undersigned European university umbrella organisations – want to express our concerns on the lack of progress and clarity regarding the association of the United Kingdom and Switzerland to the Horizon Europe research framework programme. Two years have passed since the start of the programme without any progress and the delay is causing damage to existing research partnerships between EU, UK, and Swiss knowledge institutions.
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Collective Labour Agreement 2024/2025
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UNL response to letter to the House of Representatives about managing international student flows
This afternoon, Minister of Education, Culture and Science Eppo Bruins sent a letter about his plans for internationalisation in higher education to the House of Representatives. Caspar van den Berg, president of Universities of the Netherlands: ‘Universities are very concerned about this government’s plans. The bill is called “Balanced Internationalisation”, but this government is bluntly chopping away at universities and universities of applied sciences, also cutting €293 million from the budget for the intake of international students.’
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Universities: ‘A blow to our students and staff’
Solid cuts to education and research in general agreement
Today, the coalition-forming parties presented their general agreement. The cuts to education, research and innovation came as a major shock to universities. These plans will damage the future of young people and the Netherlands. Jouke de Vries, acting president of Universities of the Netherlands: ‘The cuts to education and science are a blow to our students and staff who are already under enormous pressure. Together with the sharp intervention in the international nature of universities, these cuts are harming our ability to provide quality education and carry out research. This does not match the coalition-forming parties’ ambition to strengthen the knowledge economy and earning power of the Netherlands. With these cuts, we are putting the future of our country's youth at stake.’ -
Universities to systematically improve social safety
Dutch universities will do even more to improve social safety in their institutes. On 14 May, the Labour Inspectorate presented a study on undesirable behaviour, workload and working hours that showed, among other things, that more than half of all academic staff had experienced undesirable behaviour in the past two years. Universities of the Netherlands (UNL) is shocked by these results. Rianne Letschert, president of the Executive Board of Maastricht University on behalf of UNL: ‘It is unacceptable that so many employees should have to deal with undesirable behaviour. A safe working environment is not only a fundamental right of all staff and students, but also an essential prerequisite for high-quality education and research.’
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External Intimidation, Hatred and Threats against Academics Monitor.pdf
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Dozens of safety measures for academics
UNL, KNAW and NWO have published a monitor on external intimidation, hatred and threats against academics
Between November 2022 and December 2023, a total of 45 one-off and 14 structural safety measures were taken for academics or university staff. This was one of the findings of the Monitor for external intimidation, hatred and threats against academics, published today by the Universities of the Netherlands (UNL), the Dutch Research Council (NWO) and the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). UNL President Caspar van den Berg says, “It is appalling and unacceptable for academics to have to worry about their safety after sharing their research results. The monitor shows how important it is that we all continue to stand behind our academics.” -
Universities and employee organisations reach agreement on new collective agreement
The Universities of the Netherlands (UNL) and employee organisations have reached a negotiation
settlement on a new Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities. The agreement includes a
pay increase of 3.7% from 1 September 2024, with salaries to be raised by a further 1.0% on 1 January
2025. Staff employed at a Dutch university on 1 September 2024 will receive a one-off gross payment
of 300 euros. The universities and unions have also agreed on strategies to tackle social safety and
workload issues. The new collective labour agreement will run until 30 June 2025. Margot van der
Starre, Vice-President of Utrecht University and head of the UNL delegation, says: “Due to the budget
cuts announced by the incoming government, the universities find themselves in uncertain times,
financially speaking. For this reason, we and the unions opted for a responsible pay increase.” -
Negotiation result CLA 2024-2025
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CLA 2024-2025
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National PhD Candidates Survey Results
What are the experiences of PhD candidates and how satisfied are they with various aspects of the PhD trajectory, such as education, supervision, and workload? Dutch universities conducted research.
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Results of Recognition & Rewards culture barometer provide guidance for further implementation of the change programme
The various ambitions of the Recognition & Rewards programme are widely supported by academics. For example, they firmly endorse the diversification of career paths and the focus on quality. In addition, over half of the respondents expect to be better able to make fundamental decisions in line with their preferences, talents and life stage, besides expecting that their work will be valued more broadly. This is shown by the outcomes of the first Recognition & Rewards culture barometer, administered at the start of 2024 among academics at the institutions collaborating in the national Recognition & Rewards programme.