In June this year, we drew your attention to the Act on Tackling Sham Arrangements (WAS), which came into force in part on 1 July 2015, with the aim of achieving equal pay for equal work and combating the exploitation and underpayment of employees, as well as unfair competition. The final part of this new legislation was due to come into force on 1 January 2016. In short, the following rules were to apply to all employers from 1 January 2016:
- a ban on deductions from and set-offs against the statutory minimum wage;
- the employer must pay at least the minimum wage by bank transfer, not in cash;
- Expense allowances must be itemised on the payslip.
However, Minister Asscher has, in a letter to the House of Representatives has announced that he is postponing the entry into force of the ban on deductions and set-offs against the statutory minimum wage by six months, until 1 July 2016. The Minister will provide further information to the House of Representatives in early 2016. Any exceptions and/or amendments to the statutory ban on deductions and set-offs against the minimum wage will therefore be announced in due course. For the time being, it appears that the other two statutory obligations – namely, the requirement to pay at least the minimum wage by bank transfer and the obligation to itemise expense allowances on the payslip – will come into force as scheduled on 1 January 2016. We will, of course, keep you informed of any developments in this regard.