Maternity leave under the vocational education agreement · ECLI:NL:HR:2025:320
Supreme Court of the Netherlands · 21 February 2025
In Dutch vocational education, the calendar distinguishes annual holiday from other days when a teacher cannot be scheduled to work. For one full-time teacher, some of those other days fell during pregnancy and maternity leave. Her colleagues enjoyed the days off as a benefit. She lost them because of when her leave fell.
Why the label on the calendar mattered
The collective agreement provided compensation for certain overlapping holidays but excluded these other days. The Supreme Court treated the non-working days as an employment benefit. Denying an equivalent benefit when they coincided with pregnancy and maternity leave amounted to prohibited sex discrimination. Calling the days something other than holiday could not resolve the unequal treatment.
What the teacher gained
The Rotterdam court had asked a preliminary question. The Supreme Court’s answer meant the exclusion could not be applied as written and the compensation arrangement had to extend to the overlap. It was for the referring court to resolve the teacher’s individual claim. The Supreme Court did not calculate a cash award.
How to identify the issue
Compare the staff calendar, the applicable collective agreement and the dates of statutory leave. Identify days on which comparable colleagues were free from duty and whether the teacher received alternative time off. Different working patterns may produce a different comparison.
Read the Supreme Court’s explanation of its preliminary ruling · Read decision ECLI:NL:HR:2025:320
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