The Dutch Employment Miracle? A Comparison of Employment Systems in the Netherlands and Germany

The Netherlands are attracting increasing admiration. There are many good reasons why this should be so. However, the one that concerns us here is the country’s recent successes in the labour market. In the 1980s, the unemployment rate in the Netherlands was still one of the highest in the European Community, and the Federal Republic of Germany had one of the lowest. Today, the positions have been reversed. Why is this? Is there such a thing as a Dutch employment miracle? What contribution has labour market policy made to this state of affairs? Can we learn anything from the Netherlands or does the German model, once so highly praised, still retain a certain charm?