People doing low skilled work or who are on flexible contracts are more likely to end up claiming invalidity benefit, a government committee said on Wednesday.

More than half the people currently claiming invalidity benefits had a short-term or flexible contract and of those deemed unfit to work again, two-thirds have no qualifications, the committee of senior civil servants said.

The research, which includes 15 recommendations for improvement, will be discussed by the outgoing cabinet on Wednesday and will also be used in the ongoing coalition negotiations, the Volkskrant said.

The civil servants conclude that the overhaul of the system in 2006 has been effective, cutting the number of new claims from 100,000 a year to around 40,000 now.

Some 1.5 million people are currently working on flexible contracts, while seven million have a permanent job.

Income

The civil servants say that so many people without skills have been labeled unfit to work is partly due to the system which is based on income, rather than the reason why someone is unable to work.

Almost three quarters of people who are on 100% invalidity benefits could do some sort of job, but that is discouraged because of the likely effect on their income, the Volkskrant says, adding that ‘benefits have become an important income guarantee.’

Responsibility

By contrast, people who have a permanent job are paid for the first two years of their illness by their employer and it is the employer’s responsibility to get them back to work.

Employers also have to pay higher premiums if their staff claim invalidity benefit.

Although this has led to a substantial drop in employer contributions and higher participation in the jobs market, employers do now tend towards tougher selection procedures for new staff or give shorter contracts, the report says.