Municipalities Sign Letter of Intent for Regional Employment Center

On Thursday, September 7, partners from the South Holland Central labor market region took an important step toward establishing a Regional Employment Center (RWC). This initiative will bring all services for job seekers, workers, and employers with questions about work and training under one roof (digitally and possibly in person as well). The parties involved signed a letter of intent to this effect. On behalf of the municipality of Voorschoten, Alderman Paul de Bruijn signed the agreement. The establishment of an RWC is one of the first of its kind in the Netherlands. Currently, there are only a few other locations in the Netherlands where a similar concept exists.

The purpose of the Regional Employment Center is to provide job seekers, workers, and employers with a clear and easily recognizable place where they can go with questions about work and training. Currently, there are many different service points. Bringing them together ensures that visitors can be better assisted and that a more personalized approach can be taken. This initiative fulfills a long-held desire on the part of the national government. Based on various reports and studies, the national government concluded that bringing together as many parties as possible involved in employment and training would yield enormous benefits.

The parties involved in the South Holland Central Regional Employment Center are partners who are all involved in some way with employment in the region. These include six municipalities: Lansingerland, Leidschendam-Voorburg, Pijnacker-Nootdorp, Voorschoten, Wassenaar, and Zoetermeer. De Binnenbaan, the CNV and FNV labor unions, MBO Rijnland, the Cooperation Organization for Vocational Education and the Business Community (SBB), VNO-NCW, and UWV have also signed the memorandum of understanding.

The next step is for the parties involved to begin discussions with one another to reach a cooperation agreement. This agreement must include provisions regarding, for example, facilities, determining who the services are intended for, and how this will work in practice. The goal is to sign the agreement by mid-2024.