Collectively agreed wages in the Netherlands rose 4.0% year on year in the third quarter of 2026, CBS reports. After inflation, 0.8% was left. For 2027 the CPB, the government's economic forecaster, expects the purchasing power of a median household to stay flat (minus 0.1%). That shapes next year's salary conversation: candidates see their pay rise and keep little of it.
Wage growth is slowing
The peak came in the third quarter of 2024, at 6.8%. Since then growth has slowed quarter by quarter: 4.6% at the end of 2025, 4.5% and 4.3% in the first half of 2026, now 4.0%. In real terms collective wages have still risen for twelve quarters in a row. For 2027 the CPB expects 3.8% higher collective wages in the market sector and 2.7% inflation. It expects unemployment of 4.0% in 2027.
ICT lags behind
Sectors differ widely. Construction and specialist business services led with 5.0%. In information and communication, collective wages rose 3.1%, against 6.6% a year earlier. The catch-up of 2024 is over there.
What a candidate will ask
With purchasing power flat, the net difference a new job makes matters more. A candidate then compares the whole package: pension, travel costs, home-working allowance, training budget, and whether a bonus is actually paid out. An employer who names only the gross salary leaves part of the offer on the table.
What you can do
- Budget for 3.8% wage growth in 2027, the CPB figure for the market sector. If your own collective agreement sits below it, your salary scale is falling behind the market.
- Ask a candidate what a move has to deliver in net pay. With purchasing power flat, that weighs more than the gross figure.
- Put the whole package on paper, fixed and variable pay separately. A candidate compares the total.
- Adjust your salary scales before you hire. A rejected offer costs more than a scale that keeps up.
Sources: CBS, collective wages up 4.0% in the third quarter, 1 October 2026 (in Dutch); CPB, September projection 2026, 15 September 2026.
Pearson & Partners locates and qualifies candidates, and discusses salary and package with both sides before the offer is on paper.