{"id":104952,"date":"2019-10-28T13:30:24","date_gmt":"2019-10-28T12:30:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=104952"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:24:32","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:24:32","slug":"modest-increase-in-scientists-with-an-open-ended-contract","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2019\/10\/28\/modest-increase-in-scientists-with-an-open-ended-contract\/","title":{"rendered":"Modest increase in scientists with an open-ended contract"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s been a modest increase in the number of scientists with a permanent position at one of the Dutch universities. Temporary contracts are still more or less the norm, however \u2013 particularly in the lower echelons of academia. And with student numbers increasing year by year, the pressure of work shows no signs of abating.<\/p>\n

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Nearly all professors and associate professors have an open-ended contract. But lower on the ladder, temporary contracts are still very common<\/a>. Unions have been protesting this situation for years, and it continues to be a bone of contention<\/a> in the sector\u2019s CLA negotiations. Only this spring, Minister Van Engelshoven reproached<\/a> the universities for being too withholding in their budget allocations. She called on them to offer more staff members a permanent position.<\/p>\n

This hubbub may have had some effect. Nationwide, the share of scientists with a \u2018flex contract\u2019 has decreased from 42 percent in 2015 to 39 percent in 2018, according to the latest figures<\/a> published by the association of universities VSNU. The only universities bucking the trend are Delft, Tilburg and the Open University: they have actually increased the number of academic staff on a temporary contract.<\/p>\n