An employee who is ill and still not back after weeks sets a whole process in motion. Employers are legally required to keep paying wages for up to two years and at the same time to work actively on reintegration. Anyone who acts too late or incompletely risks a wage sanction from UWV of up to 52 weeks of extra wage payment, on top of the two years already required. On a gross annual salary of 50,000 euros that can run to 35,000 euros in extra wage costs, not counting the cost of guidance.
The heart of the Dutch reintegration system lies in two tracks prescribed by the Gatekeeper Improvement Act (in Dutch): the first track, aimed at a return to the current employer, and the second track, aimed at work with another employer. Many employers and HR professionals intuitively know that these tracks exist, but how they work exactly, the statutory deadlines and how they relate to each other are less well known.
In this article we set both tracks out clearly: when does each start, what are the obligations, which pitfalls are there and how can you as an employer, employee or HR professional keep a grip on the whole process? We link the theory to practice, so that you know what to expect from a good occupational physician.
What are the two tracks in reintegration?
The reintegration process for an employee with long-term absence is divided in law into two parts. The first track means the employee returns to suitable work with their current employer, possibly in an adjusted role or with different tasks and hours. The second track is meant for situations where a return to the current employer is no longer feasible: then the search turns to suitable work with another employer or in another sector. Both tracks flow from article 7:658a of the Dutch Civil Code and from the obligations the Gatekeeper Improvement Act places on employer and employee.
The first track: returning to the current employer
The first track almost always starts first. As soon as an employee is ill, the employer looks into whether a return to their own role or an adjusted role within the organisation is possible. Think of lightening tasks, adjusting working hours or setting up a different workstation. As long as there are still suitable solutions internally, you stay in the first track as an employer.
The occupational physician plays a central part in this. By week 6 at the latest the physician draws up a problem analysis, mapping the employee's limitations, possibilities and expected recovery. On the basis of that analysis, employer and employee together draw up an action plan by week 8 at the latest, with concrete agreements on resuming work, on guidance and on review moments. That plan is not a one-off document: progress is discussed at least once every six weeks and adjusted where needed.
First-track reintegration applies after all kinds of absence: after an operation, a burnout, long covid or a serious diagnosis. The starting point is always that a return to the familiar employer is preferable, for the employee as well as for the organisation.
The second track: reintegration outside the organisation
When it becomes clear that resuming work within the organisation is no longer realistic, the second track comes into view. The employee stays employed by the current employer during this process, but the guidance is aimed at finding suitable work elsewhere. A specialist reintegration agency usually takes the guidance on and offers career advice, labour market orientation, application training and help with networking.
By law the second track must start by week 52 of the illness at the latest, but starting earlier is wiser in most cases. At the first-year evaluation, employer and employee assess together whether a return to the current employer is still realistic. If it is not, the second track has to be demonstrably running within six weeks. Anyone who has organised nothing by that point runs a serious risk of a wage sanction from UWV.
The second track usually lasts no more than two years (in Dutch), but in practice it is often completed within a year. In the first six months of the second track the employee does not have to accept work that does not match their education, experience, possibilities and salary level. After that period the definition of suitable work can gradually widen.
Can both tracks run at the same time?
A common misunderstanding is that the first track has to be fully completed before the second may start. That is not the case. Both tracks may and can run at the same time, and that is sometimes even advisable when the chance of a return to the current employer is uncertain. By running both in parallel you lose no precious time and improve the chance of a successful reintegration within the statutory two years. The condition is that the use of both tracks is well founded and that the occupational physician is involved. In practice this combined approach is still used too little, while UWV does expect employers to act proactively.
The occupational physician's role in both tracks
Whether you are in the first or the second track, the occupational physician is the connecting link. In the first track the physician advises on what the employee can bear, on suitable work and on the possibilities for resuming work. In the second track the physician draws up the functional capacity list, which a labour expert uses to determine which type of work fits what the employee can still do. That list forms the basis for guidance by a reintegration adviser outside the organisation.
Good documentation is indispensable in both tracks. UWV assesses afterwards, at the WIA application, whether employer and employee have made enough effort. An incomplete file or support started too late can lead to a wage sanction, even when a good deal has been done in substance.
A common mistake: waiting too long with the second track
One of the most common causes of a wage sanction is that employers start the second track too late or not at all, while UWV does test for it when assessing the WIA application. That risk often turns not on one missed step but on the overall picture: acting late, investigating insufficiently, adjusting insufficiently or keeping a poor file. A wage sanction from UWV (in Dutch) requires the employer to keep paying wages for up to 52 extra weeks on top of the 104 already passed, and the employment cannot be ended during that period.
Practical handles: keeping a grip on the process
- Report the absence to the occupational physician straight away, so that the problem analysis is ready by week 6 at the latest.
- Draw up the action plan by week 8 at the latest, together with the employee, with concrete agreements and review moments.
- Review progress at least once every six weeks and record everything in writing.
- Around weeks 42 to 52, discuss honestly whether a return to the current employer is realistic and, if not, start the second track without delay.
- Consider running both tracks in parallel when the outlook for the first track is uncertain.
- Keep a complete reintegration file, because UWV looks at the overall picture of effort.
Good reintegration policy is not only a statutory obligation. It is also an investment in the person behind the absence file. An employee who is guided well and in good time recovers faster on average and feels taken seriously. That makes the difference for the person and for the organisation.
What Dokter Beter does in both tracks
As an occupational health practice, Dokter Beter guides employers and employees through the whole reintegration process. In the first track the physician draws up the problem analysis, advises on suitable work and watches the progress of the action plan. In the second track Dokter Beter works with labour experts and reintegration specialists to make the move to a new working environment run as smoothly as possible. Both tracks call for timeliness, clarity and humanity, and that is exactly what we stand for every day.
Anyone who waits too long with the second track pays for it, literally.
Reintegration through the first or second track is not a bureaucratic ritual but a process that touches real people. Knowing the rules of the game keeps you in control of the situation and prevents unnecessary cost and delay for everyone.
Key takeaways
- The first track is aimed at a return to the current employer, in the employee's own or an adjusted role. The second track is aimed at work with another employer or in another sector.
- The occupational physician draws up a problem analysis by week 6 at the latest; employer and employee draw up an action plan together by week 8 at the latest.
- The second track must start by week 52 at the latest, but starting earlier is almost always wiser and lowers the risk of a wage sanction.
- Both tracks may and can run at the same time: that is not an exception but sometimes the smartest approach when the outlook is uncertain.
- Insufficient reintegration effort can lead to a wage sanction from UWV: up to 52 weeks of extra wage payment on top of the two years already required.
- Good file-keeping is indispensable in both tracks, because UWV assesses the overall picture of effort at the WIA application.
- Dokter Beter guides employers and employees through both the first and the second track, from problem analysis to reintegration report.
Not sure which track applies, or want to know whether your approach meets the Gatekeeper Improvement Act? Get in touch with Dokter Beter. We are happy to think along, before a deadline takes you by surprise.