Vice Chair

Education Disputes Foundation

The mission of the Education Disputes Foundation is to:

• to provide independent and expert dispute resolution services to the entire education sector, and
• to serve as a center of expertise for conflict resolution and legal protection in education.

Onderwijsgeschillen provides professional dispute resolution services for the education sector. To this end, Onderwijsgeschillen maintains independent committees. At the request of the employee, student, parent, representative body, or competent authority seeking redress, these committees handle the various complaints, appeals, objections, and requests that may arise within the educational community. The committees of Onderwijsgeschillen are established based on legislation, collective bargaining agreements, and agreements with educational institutions. The committees are all staffed by external independent members from specific professional groups: from the judiciary and other legal professions, as well as from the administrative sector, interest groups representing staff, parents, and students, and the fields of pedagogy, educational science, and healthcare.
Onderwijsgeschillen employs approximately 25 people who provide legal and secretarial support to the committees and manage the organization’s operations and quality.

Onderwijsgeschillen is committed to accessible and professional legal protection. Onderwijsgeschillen is open to everyone and aims for its committees to reflect our society. The committees work as a team, leveraging the strength of each member’s unique talents.

Quality requires constant attention. That is why Onderwijsgeschillen has an Expertise Center focused on improving the quality of dispute resolution in education. The Expertise Center has a research agenda focused on evaluating education legislation and the quality of dispute resolution in education.

About LCG WMS

The School Participation Act (Wms) governs participation in primary education (po), secondary education (vo), special (secondary) education ((v)so), and in partnerships for appropriate education. If parties involved in the participation process have a disagreement and cannot resolve it together, they may, under certain conditions specified in the law, submit this disagreement to the National WMS Disputes Committee.

All schools in primary education, secondary education, special education (for girls), and the special education partnerships are automatically affiliated with the Commission. This means that any school board or parent-teacher association at these institutions can contact the Commission.

The Commission handles various types of disputes:

• Approval disputes.
• Disputes over advice.
• Statute of limitations.
• Disputes over regulations.
• Compliance disputes.

Both the competent authority and the representative body involved in the matter (referred to in the law as a “matter”) may submit a dispute to the Commission under the conditions set forth in the law.

In 2022, the Commission received over 30 requests to review a dispute. Not all disputes lead to a hearing. Approximately 10% of the requests are later withdrawn.

The Commission aims to contribute to the effective functioning of the participation process by promoting consultation with the representatives of the school’s staff, parents, and students. In the Commission’s view, it is therefore generally preferable for the competent authority and (the various sections of) the participation council to reach an agreement (after all). The Wms stipulates that the Commission is authorized to submit a mediation proposal to the parties. There is also the option of offering mediation by one of the mediators from Onderwijsgeschillen.

For more information about the LCG WMS and its current composition, see the website of Onderwijsgeschillen.

LCG WMS Workflow

Both the competent authority and the employee participation body may submit a dispute to the Commission by filing a case online. When filing a case, the submitter must explain which provision of the law or the MR regulations is at issue, what the submitter’s position is regarding the dispute, and what the submitter is requesting from the Commission. The submitter must provide the documents relevant to the resolution of the dispute in digital form.

The Commission’s secretary is responsible for preparing the substance of the case file, in consultation with the chair. If procedural decisions are required during the preparation of the case file, these are made by the chair on behalf of the Commission.

Once the case has been fully filed, the Commission will ask the opposing party to submit a response. The opposing party generally has four weeks to submit this response.

The Commission will hear the case at a public hearing in Utrecht. Hearings are held twice a month. During the hearing, both parties will present their arguments and answer questions from the Commission. The parties may be assisted or represented by an authorized representative at the hearing, but this is not mandatory.

At the conclusion of the hearing, the Commission assesses the matter in light of the legal frameworks applicable to the dispute and reaches a decision. The secretary records this decision in a written and reasoned ruling issued by the Commission. Once approved by the Commission members, the ruling is formalized and sent to the parties electronically.

Both parties will receive the Commission’s decision electronically within six business weeks of the hearing. The decision will include the Commission’s ruling on the dispute and the reasoning behind it. The Commission’s decision is binding, which means that both parties must comply with it. It is possible to appeal the decision to the Enterprise Chamber.

The ruling will be published on the Education Disputes website.

Profile

We are seeking an experienced legal professional who is eligible for appointment as a judge to serve as vice-chair. You should have an affinity for or knowledge of education (primary and secondary), employee participation law, and/or social law. Experience with employee participation is a plus. In addition, you should have extensive experience in conducting hearings and resolving disputes, preferably as a chair.

Responsibilities and competencies

You will provide strategic and tactical leadership to the LCG WMS and the secretariat, paying close attention to each person’s role and the Commission’s responsibilities. You will preside over the oral hearing and ensure that all parties are given a fair opportunity to present their views. The vice-chair alternates with the chair in presiding over the hearing. The vice-chair also replaces the chair in the chair’s absence.

In addition, you possess the following skills:

• Up-to-date knowledge of one's own discipline.
• Communication skills (the ability to listen effectively and interact with various stakeholders).
• Constructive and solution-oriented.
• Collaborating with various disciplines.
• Awareness of quality in relation to one’s own performance and the committee’s performance.

In addition, you have the following qualities:

• Open-minded and unbiased.
• Decisive.
• Integer.
• An eye for multiple perspectives in disputes.
• Being able to put oneself in another person's shoes.

The LCG WMS values diversity in terms of age, background, disciplines, and educational experience.

Term of appointment and time commitment

You will be appointed for a term of three years. The appointment may be terminated early at your own request or following a performance evaluation. After the initial term, reappointment is possible twice, subject to a positive performance evaluation.

You will serve on the committee for approximately nine days per year; one to a maximum of three cases are heard per session day. In addition, a plenary meeting of the committee and the support staff is held at least once a year.

The compensation for this additional position is €828 per court case, plus travel expenses at a rate of 0.28 cents per kilometer.

Procedure

In this recruitment and selection process, Onderwijsgeschillen is being assisted by the executive search firm Colourful People. Colourful People will conduct the executive search and pre-screen candidates based on the applications received. Suitable candidates will be presented to the client, who will then select candidates to be invited for an initial interview.

Scheduling appointments

We welcome applications for this position no later than August 5, 2023 via the application form on the Colourful People website. There will be one round of interviews, which will take place in week 36. Following this round of interviews, there may be an introductory meeting with the executive director of Onderwijsgeschillen.

The Appointments Advisory Committee consists of the chair of the LCG WMS, two members of the Committee, the secretary of the LCG WMS, and the director of the Education Disputes Board.

Following the round of consultations, the Education Disputes Board submits a binding recommendation to the Minister of Education, Culture, and Science, requesting that the appointment be made.

For more information about the job opening, please contact Roeli Pot. She can be reached at 06-28909312 or via r.pot@colourfulpeople.nl.

Sales calls are not appreciated.