Allowances in catering

Travel expenses

Everyone needs to get to work, whether by car or public transport, for example. Are you actually entitled to a travel expense allowance? And how does that work? For contract catering, there is a travel expense scheme with a net mileage allowance for a maximum of 30 km per single journey per day, with no allowance given for the first 10 km. This maximum does not apply to regional employees. For employees who already had a travel expense scheme on 1 January 2014, the difference between the existing travel expense allowance and the travel expense scheme as of 1 January 2015 is expressed in a personal allowance 'travel costs'. The allowance is only paid on days when work is actually carried out.

From 1 April 2024, travel expenses in part A and part B are increased by €0.04 per kilometre. This means an increase for part A from €0.15 to €0.19 per kilometre and for part B an increase from €0.19 to €0.23 per kilometre. The other agreements from the CLA remain unchanged.

The travel expense allowance is a minimum scheme that the employer must apply. Employer and employee can always agree on a higher travel expense allowance in consultation. The works council can also agree on a better company-wide scheme. 

Different agreements apply to inflight. The travel expenses are increased from €0.19 to €0.21 per kilometre from 11 to 40 kilometres. Here too, the other agreements from the CLA remain unchanged.

CLA parties find it important to use sustainable forms of transport for commuting. Therefore, it will be investigated how employer and employee can be encouraged to choose the bicycle, public transport, or an electric or hybrid car. The agreements on more sustainable transport will come into effect no later than 1 January 2025.

Holiday pay

Everyone who works is entitled to holiday pay. So are you! This is paid once a year, no later than the month of June. The holiday pay amounts to 8% of the salary you have earned with your employer in the holiday year (1 June to 31 May the following year). Incidental allowances, bonuses, and benefits in kind are not included. The holiday pay is often slightly less than a gross monthly salary.

Irregularity Allowance (ORT)

A normal working day in contract catering falls between seven in the morning and six in the evening from Monday to Friday. If you work outside these hours, you receive an allowance for working irregular hours. This allowance is calculated according to the irregular hours allowance matrix. All employees working in contract catering receive a 10% allowance for hours worked from 18:00 to 22:00 from Monday to Friday. The allowance increases as the time is perceived as more inconvenient: working until ten in the evening on a weekday is less burdensome than working at night. Working on Sunday is slightly more unpleasant than on Saturday. The night from Saturday to Sunday and from Sunday to Monday is as burdensome as a Sunday shift.

If you no longer work irregular hours, you retain the right to irregular hours allowances for 1 month.

But what if you can no longer work irregular shifts due to health reasons or at the employer's instruction? In that case, you lose the allowance, but not immediately! Have you received an irregularity allowance for at least one year or longer because you worked in a five-shift system? Then you are entitled to retain your irregularity allowance for a maximum of six salary periods, at least, when you have worked those years in this irregular service (continuous service). Parts of a year count as a whole year.

Shift Work  

If you work in a five-shift system, you are entitled to an allowance from the CLA catering. Additionally, there is a fixed overtime compensation of 75% applicable for employees in four- and five-shift systems.

For employees who no longer work in a shift system, at the employer's instruction or for health reasons, there is a phasing-out scheme. The scheme prevents you from experiencing a rapid decrease in income. To qualify for this scheme, you must have worked in a shift system for at least one year. After stopping the shift work, you receive six more salary periods with an allowance. Then the phased reduction begins. You can find the phasing-out in the CLA catering. Are you 55 years or older and forced to stop working in shift systems? Then the phasing-out periods are doubled.

Are you covered by part B of the CLA? Then you receive an irregularity allowance of 35% if you work between 22:00 and 07:00. This allowance does not apply if you work within party or event catering.

Do you work at a location where the activities have been outsourced by the client to a service provider in a 5-shift system? Then you are entitled to an allowance. You can find the allowance for business and institutional catering in the CLA. If you no longer work in shifts, a phasing-out scheme also applies here. Check the conditions in the CLA catering.

Public holidays

Recognised public holidays are not additional paid days off like a holiday. In the CLA catering, there is an additional allowance included if you actually work during the public holidays.

If you work on a recognised public holiday, you are entitled to a bonus. The basis is the percentages of the irregular hours matrix that apply to you at that time. This is increased with an allowance of 100%. This latter allowance will be granted as much as possible in the form of time off. The employer is obliged to give this time off in the period of two weeks prior to the public holiday or within six weeks following the month in which the public holiday occurred.

Recognised public holidays are: New Year's Day, first and second Easter Day, King's Day, 5 May every 5 years (for the first time in 2025), Ascension Day, first and second Whit Monday, first and second Christmas Day.

Are you under part B of the CLA? For actually working in a shift that starts on a public holiday, with the shift extending past midnight, the following compensation applies:

• Time for time: for each hour worked on the public holiday with the shift extending; 1 hour of substitute paid time off.
• Time for time not possible within 3 months after the public holiday: 50% bonus on the hourly salary for the hours worked on the public holiday and the time for time lapses.
• Recognised public holidays are: New Year's Day, first and second Easter Day, King's Day, Ascension Day, first and second Whit Monday, and first and second Christmas Day.

The holiday compensation does not apply to the employee who is not yet a skilled worker.

Clothing allowance

In many catering companies, company clothing is worn: a skirt or trousers with a matching blouse and waistcoat or jacket; all in the company colours, featuring the company logo. Your employer must pay for the purchase, repair, and dry cleaning costs. Additionally, there is also professional clothing. This can be a waiter's jacket or chef's clothing. Or the well-known black skirt with a white blouse of the hostess. If your employer requires you to provide this professional clothing yourself, then they must pay a clothing allowance of €16.12 per month. This arrangement applies to employees in part A.

Anniversary allowance

After 12.5 years of employment, you are entitled to an anniversary allowance of a quarter of a month's salary. After 25 years of service, an extra month's salary awaits you. And on a 40-year anniversary, you are entitled to two months' salary. The employer utilises the maximum possible tax exemption for this. This arrangement applies to employees in part A.