What a confidential contact person (vertrouwenspersoon) is, what Dutch law currently requires (and what's about to change), and who Moral Fabric has worked with.
What is a confidential contact person?
A confidential adviser (vertrouwenspersoon) is someone employees can go to, in confidence, if they experience or witness undesirable behaviour at work: bullying, (sexual) harassment, discrimination, aggression, or violence. Anything shared with them stays confidential, it isn't shared with management or the board. They can be an internal employee or an external professional.
Is it required by law?
There are two layers here, one already in force, one not yet.
Already in force: Article 3 of the Working Conditions Act (Arbowet) already requires every employer to have a policy that prevents psychosocial workload (PSA), covering work pressure, undesirable behaviour, and social unsafety. A confidential contact person isn't named explicitly in that article, but the Dutch Labour Inspectorate and the Social and Economic Council (SER) both point to one as a proven, recommended measure for meeting this existing obligation.
Not yet in force: a separate bill (wetsvoorstel 35592, adding a new art. 13a to the Arbowet) would make appointing a confidential contact person, internal or external, mandatory for organizations with 10 or more employees. It passed the Tweede Kamer (House of Representatives) in May 2023 and has been sitting with the Eerste Kamer (Senate) since, with no confirmed date it takes effect. Organizations under 10 employees are exempted by amendment. Once it does pass, larger organizations get 4 months to comply, the smallest get 16 months.
As of writing, this specific obligation is pending, not yet law. Worth treating as inevitable rather than optional though, both because of the direction of travel and because of the existing (if less explicit) PSA obligation above.
Why Moral Fabric recommends it anyway
Even without the specific mandate, having a confidential contact person is a low-cost, high-value way to meet the existing PSA duty, catch issues early, and give employees somewhere safe to go that isn't their manager or the board. It's especially valuable for small organizations that don't have the internal capacity or independence to run this role themselves, which is why an external option is usually the practical choice.
External confidential adviser: Thermieq
Moral Fabric has worked with Thermieq , whose confidential advisors Mirjam Lamark and Jacklin Goverde are both trained, certified, and registered.
This isn't an exhaustive market comparison, just two providers Moral Fabric has direct, positive experience with.
Good to know
- An internal confidential contact person needs to be genuinely independent, not someone's direct manager, HR, or anyone involved in disciplinary decisions. Many small organizations choose an external one specifically to guarantee that independence.
- Once the pending law takes effect, the works council or staff representation will get a say in who's appointed, and the confidential contact person will get explicit dismissal protection for actions taken in that role.