A transport company in The Hague has been ordered to stop work for two months after repeated minimum-wage record failures. It also received a €315,000 fine. The company could not provide payslips, payment evidence and hours records for ten employees. Missing payroll records can put daily operations at risk.
Why this matters
Since January 2024, the Dutch statutory minimum wage has been based on hours worked. From 1 July 2026, the gross hourly minimum for workers aged 21 and over is €14.99. A contract or collective labour agreement may set a higher rate. A payroll file should connect the worker, contract, final hours, wage calculation, holiday allowance and payment. Those records often sit with planning, payroll and finance. Repeated failures can stop designated work for up to three months. Deliveries stop, invoices wait, and vehicle costs continue.
Example
A planner changes a driver’s shift after a delayed delivery. The planning file is updated, but payroll receives the original hours. Finance releases the wage payment and keeps the bank record. Months later, the company must explain the gap between the roster, final hours and payslip. Its file cannot support the wage calculation. The same gap can hide a route’s labour cost when the owner sets prices.
XTROVERSO tips
- Trace a small payroll sample. Select several workers with variable hours. Match each contract, final hours record, payslip, holiday allowance calculation and bank payment.
- Compare planning with payroll. Check that payroll uses the final operational hours. Record why any entry differs. Do not overwrite the original record.
- Give each handover an owner. Planning can own final hours. Payroll can own the calculation. Finance can retain payment evidence. A manager should check that the records match.
- Test file retrieval. Check that records are easy to find by worker and pay period. Include former staff and workers supplied through agencies or subcontractors.
- Put a stoppage into cash planning. Model a fine and several weeks without billable work. Include payroll, vehicle finance, insurance, rent and supplier invoices.
Need help checking the link between hours, payroll and payment? We can review the file and identify the gaps
The data, sourcing, and analysis behind this article were conducted by Linda Pavan. AI was not used to identify sources, build the factual basis, or produce the analytical judgment contained here. AI was used only as a drafting aid. The final English text was personally reviewed, edited, and approved by Linda Pavan before publication.
References
- Werkzaamheden Haags transportbedrijf 2 maanden stilgelegd | Nederlandse Arbeidsinspectie
- Nederlandse Arbeidsinspectie - Documentation duties, fine structure and recidivism under the WML
- Wettenbank - Legal basis for preventive work stoppage
- Rijksoverheid - Current statutory minimum hourly wage
- Nederlandse Arbeidsinspectie - Preventieve stillegging
