Finally an internship allowance for medical interns, but not at UMCs

General hospitals will now provide medical interns with not only an expense allowance but also a monthly internship allowance of 150 euros. Medical students hope that university hospitals will follow this example.

At the end of March, trade unions for medical staff and the Dutch Association of Hospitals reached an agreement on a new collective labour agreement. It significantly improves the compensation for medical interns and other university trainees: on top of their monthly expense allowance of 150 euros, they will now receive an internship allowance of 150 euros as well.

Half a century of struggle

The news was met with cheers from the fifteen thousand members of the advocacy group De Geneeskundestudent. Medical interns have been campaigning for better compensation for more than half a century. In addition to their compulsory two-year internships, they have little to no time to take on a side job.

When the basic grant was abolished in 2015, interns stepped up the pressure. Then education minister Jet Bussemaker (PvdA) did not agree with their demand: medical students would earn enough later on to repay their increased student debt. Moreover, internships were not considered true placements that warranted a stipend, but rather part of their training.

Change of heart

But not everyone agreed, and in 2019 the university medical centres (UMCs) eventually gave in. Medical interns there began receiving an expense allowance of around 100 euros a month, and general (or peripheral) hospitals followed suit in 2020.

Whether the UMCs will in turn be willing to provide a proper internship allowance remains uncertain. In January, it emerged that they were not complying with collective labour agreement provisions on internship pay.

Precedent

Chair Berk Uzunalioglu of De Geneeskundestudent remains optimistic. “We push for a market-based internship allowance in every collective agreement negotiation. Medical interns should ultimately receive a stipend that aligns with what other healthcare interns, such as nursing students, receive.”

The fact that interns in general hospitals are now receiving an internship allowance sets an important precedent, he believes. “It shows that fair compensation is indeed possible, and that strengthens our position in all future collective bargaining talks, including with the UMCs.”