Senior Advisor on Employee Participation and Employer Affairs

The NVWA is at the heart of society and is undergoing change. Changing operational budgets, organizational changes, and rising societal expectations call for clear choices, careful decision-making, modern labor relations, and strong relationships with stakeholders such as the works council and labor unions at the departmental level. Do you want to contribute at a strategic level to building a future-proof public organization? Then we are looking for you.

You will work within the Internal Organization Department, as part of the Organizational Consulting and Leadership team. There, you will contribute to further professionalizing organizational development, employee participation, and labor relations within the NVWA. You will fulfill your role with substantive depth, administrative sensitivity, and a strong sense of collaboration.

What will you be doing?

In this role, you will be at the intersection of strategy, organizational development, and governance coordination. You will serve as a key advisor to the board, executive management, and line management. Drawing on your subject-matter expertise, you will shape both the substance and the decision-making and employee participation processes for complex initiatives such as reorganizations, the restructuring of organizational units, or the implementation of substantive policy changes that impact employees, their legal status, and their terms of employment.

An important part of your job is designing and implementing employee participation processes. You play a central role in this: you help shape the relationship with employee participation bodies. You advise on the approach to decision-making processes involving the works council and/or trade unions, you advise on the employee participation process to be followed, organize consultation meetings and prepare them carefully, and negotiate on behalf of the organization in sensitive matters. In doing so, you navigate the dynamics between the board, line management, and employee participation bodies with ease, both within the NVWA and in collaboration with the ministry. You have a keen eye and solid experience with legal frameworks, administrative relationships, and the political and social context in which the NVWA operates.

You provide advice on the adaptation and application of personnel regulations, collective bargaining agreement provisions, and legal status issues, and are also available to offer guidance on their interpretation and application within the NVWA. You translate complex regulations into practical solutions for managers, HR advisors, and policymakers. During change processes, you ensure that agreements and legislation are properly translated into concrete implementation, in close coordination with colleagues from HR and line management.

Would you like to use your expertise to help build a well-organized, fair, and future-proof NVWA? Apply now!

Job Requirements

You are someone who effortlessly switches between strategy and execution. In an environment where interests diverge and decisions are under close scrutiny, you remain calm and focused. You have experience with complex changes within public organizations and understand how crucial themes such as employee participation, labor relations, and organizational structure intersect.
You know how to build support—not by pushing, but by connecting and showing courage. Whether you’re talking to a board member, a union, or an HR advisor, you bring calm, clarity, and confidence.

In addition, you possess:

• a completed university degree and a demonstrated ability to work and think at the university level;
  
• extensive experience in a similar advisory role, preferably within the public or quasi-public sector;
  
• experience with employee participation rights and employee participation processes 
  
• knowledge of the Central Government Collective Bargaining Agreement (preferred);
  
• a keen eye for organizational issues related to legal status, employment conditions, and governance;
  
• the ability to clearly translate complex subject matter into practical, actionable advice and easy-to-read memos;
  
• Excellent advisory skills: you are persuasive, diplomatic, and know how to build support;
  
• Administrative and political sensitivity: you sense the underlying currents and act on them with tact.

Skills: 
• Analyze
• Environmental awareness
• Independence
• Persuasiveness
• Organizational sensitivity

The NVWA is committed to building a workforce that reflects the diversity of society and places great importance on an inclusive hiring policy. We therefore encourage everyone to apply, regardless of cultural background, age, gender identity, religion, disability, or sexual orientation.

Terms of Employment

• Salary level: Grade 13
• Monthly salary: Min. €5,212 – Max. €7,747 (gross)
• Employment status: Fixed-term employment contract with the possibility of conversion to a permanent contract
• Contract duration: 1 year
• Minimum number of hours per week: 32
• Maximum number of hours per week: 36

Other terms and conditions of employment

In addition to an onboarding program tailored to your role and extensive training and/or coaching opportunities to support your professional growth, we also offer the following employee benefits:

Individual Choice Budget You receive an Individual Choice Budget (ICB) equal to 16.50% of your gross annual salary. You can have your ICB paid out, for example, on a monthly or annual basis, or you can use it to purchase additional leave hours. In addition, you can use your IKB to purchase a (electric) bicycle for commuting tax-free, set up your home office,pay off your student loan with tax benefits up to a maximum of €2,000 per year,or even make your home more sustainable. To encourage this, the national government offers an employer contribution on top of the IKB.

Vacation Days If you work 36 hours per week, you are entitled to 144 vacation hours and 64 IKB leave hours per year. Do you work more or fewer hours? Then these hours are calculated proportionally. And if you don’t need as much vacation time? Then you can also choose to have your 64 IKB leave hours paid out or added to your IKB saved leave.

Travel Allowance You will receive a mobility card that allows you to travel by train in second class for your commute. Do you bike to work? If so, you will receive a travel allowance of €0.21 per kilometer cycled. If you have a field-based position, you are often also eligible for an electric company car. You may also use this for personal purposes based on the additional tax liabilityplus a personal contribution.

Leave Policies
The government offers leave policies for various situations, such as (additional) maternity leave (up to 5 weeks with 100% pay), parental leave (up to 9 weeks with 100% pay in the first year and an additional 75% for 4 weeks), care leave, and adoption/foster care leave.

Pension The Dutch government has an attractive pension plan with ABP, the General Civil Service Pension Fund. Read more about the ABP pension plan here.

Additional allowances and reimbursements
For some positions at the NVWA, it is necessary to work outside regular office hours or to be on call. However, this is compensated by additional allowances or reimbursements. For example, we offer an on-call and standby duty allowance and an irregular shift allowance.

Details

• Applications will be considered in accordance with applicable agreements, including the Central Government Collective Labor Agreement and the NVP Application Code.
• A Certificate of Good Conduct (VOG) is required to work at the NVWA.
• If the position involves a fixed-term employment contract with the prospect of becoming permanent, the permanent contract is initially preceded by a one-year contract. Provided the employee proves to be suitable, the contract is generally converted into a permanent contract of indefinite duration after one year.
• Is this a job opening for a fixed-term contract with the possibility of becoming permanent, but do you already have a permanent position as a civil servant? If so, you will retain your permanent position.
• If the position is initially a fixed-term role, it will not be reopened if the role can be made permanent within the organization and the (initially) temporary position was filled by an internal employee with a permanent contract.
• Online screening—for example, through search engines or social media—can be part of the selection process.
• A competency test and/or an assessment may be part of the selection process.
• A comprehensive A or B screening by the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) may be required for certain positions at the NVWA, including those in the Intelligence and Investigation Service (IOD).
• Recruitment agencies are asked to refrain from contacting us regarding this job opening.

More about the Senior Operations Advisor job category

The Central Government Performance Framework helps employees and managers establish performance and development goals during performance reviews and provides insight into career opportunities within the federal government.

For more information, visit the Central Government Job Classification System 

More about your future department

The Human Resources (HR) department consists of several teams:
• HR Consulting
• Labor Law and HR Information
• Labor Market Communication, Recruitment, and Career Services
• Organizational Consulting and Leadership
•    Culture, Learning, and Development

The Organizational Consulting and Leadership team consists of two clusters: Organizational Consulting, which includes this position, and Management Development. The Organizational Consulting cluster acts as a trusted partner at all levels of the organization. The cluster helps managers shape the organizational structure and drive sustainable development or change within their units. P&O Organizational Consulting also oversees organizational development and structure. Employee participation is a key component here. The support provided during the transition covers everything from A to Z: from the structural, process, and systems aspects to the cultural, developmental, and social aspects, and vice versa. The advice is based on the NVWA’s strategic goals and change principles and supports the translation of these into the relevant part of the client’s organization (team interventions / process guidance). We collaborate with internal partners such as (organizational) consultants in specific areas within other NVWA departments under Internal Organization and Strategy, as well as external partners (O&P Rijk, Rijksconsultants, framework agreements).  

You will be joining a stimulating work environment where collegiality and a positive work atmosphere are paramount. The atmosphere is relaxed; we work hard, but we also have fun.

Feel free to ask your question

More information about this job opening

Liesbeth van der Wind

0611836378

More information about the application process

Wafae Oustou

0621962538

Interested in applying? 

The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) invites you to apply on their website. The government is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive organization. Working in diverse teams makes us more effective, more innovative, and makes the work more enjoyable. Everyone is therefore encouraged to apply.