News from the works councils (March 2023)
The COR NWO (Central Works Council)
New Implementing Regulations for 2023-2025
The COR NWO has reached an agreement with the Executive Board representative about the new Implementing Regulations (IR) for 2023-2025, within 2024 a reassessment of, among other things, compensation amounts and an adjustment of the staff interview system. Various issues have been included in these regulations that, in addition to the collective labour agreement, apply to all NWO employees. For the COR NWO it was, amongst other things, important that remunerations keep pace with the rising costs, that internships are remunerated irrespective of the educational level, and that there is a sustainable policy that motivates people instead of being punitive. We are not only pleased with the outcome but also with how the negotiations went. Here you will find an overview of all changes in the Implementing Regulations.
GOR NWO-I (Group Works Council)
Development Operations NWO-I
In 2023, the Development Operations at NWO-I was also an important theme for the GOR NWO-I. It is a process in which we must always evaluate as carefully as possible how tangible and realistic the plans are that the Executive Board representative submits to the GOR NWO-I. We are currently discussing with the Executive Board representative how the process can be set up more efficiently, with more focus on aspects for which we must provide advice (or approval).
SURFsoc SIEM for cyber security
Cybersecurity at the NWO-I office and institutes is an important subject. In this context, the GOR NWO-I in January received a request for advice about SURFsoc SIEM. This system must ensure that suspicious activities on the network are detected and that immediate action can follow where necessary. Via SURF an external company has been engaged for this. The local works councils have now received a request for approval due to the privacy sensitivity of the information to be processed. The request for advice received by the GOR NWO-I concerns the deployment and financing of these services.
Harmonised personnel information system Youforce
NWO-I is working with the institutes on a harmonised personnel information system called Youforce, which communicates with the central database (Beaufort). At present, the institutes still enter their data in different ways. The harmonisation of these processes must result in higher accuracy and greater ease of working for the HR departments. The introduction of this system has been on the agenda for some time, but it has only recently become clear that the GOR NWO-I has both the right to provide advice for and consider approval of some aspects of this process. The project group will thoroughly inform two members of the GOR NWO-I while we draft advice about the use, implementation, and timeline of Youforce.
COR NWO and GOR NWO-I - Discussion on the general state of affairs
On 23 January, the COR NWO and GOR NWO-I discussed the general state of affairs with the Executive Board members. Besides Marcel Levi and Caroline Visser, the meeting was also attended by Dirk Jan van den Berg, chair of the Supervisory Board. The topics we talked about included the Dutch Climate Research Initiative (KIN), the governance of NWO-I, and the development of operations. Would you like to know more about what was discussed? Then read the minutes of this meeting. You can request the minutes via COR@nwo-i.nl.