Only physically-heavy work such as the construction sector will be considered ‘heavy work’ in the cabinet’s changes to state pension legislation, junior social affairs minister Jetta Klijnsma told MPs on Wednesday.

People doing jobs which take a heavy mental toll such as police officers, teachers and nurses will not be covered by the plan to force employers to retrain staff after 30 years, Klijnsma said.
‘If you are worn out, that’s it. But if you suffer from stress, you can recover,’ the minister was quoted by the Volkskrant as saying. ‘Then it is often a question of getting enough rest and taking care of things at home and at work.’
The cabinet is planning to increase the state and corporate retirement age from 65 to 67 in two stages. But to help workers doing tough jobs cope with the extra years, the cabinet is to force employers to find them lighter tasks after 30 years.
On Wednesday it emerged that the government’s most senior advisory body, the council of state, is highly critical of the draft legislation.
Klijnsma and social affairs minister Piet Hein Donner plan to present their definition of ‘heavy work’ to parliament before the Christmas break.