The report analyzed 49 listed Dutch companies. It shows that revenue increased by an average of 21% between 2019 and 2022, while profit and distribution to shareholders increased by 36 and 59%, respectively. Personnel costs lagged with a 12% increase.
“It clearly demonstrates that the profits of these companies don’t end with the employees,” Bolster says. «While employees are affected by inflation. It’s time to change that.’ According to the board member, wages should be further increased and companies can be taxed more.
‘grab inflation’
Not only have turnover and profit increased in recent years, so have profit margins. “We’re talking about an increase from 7.5% to 8.5% of margin per euro of turnover,” says Bolster. According to her, these increases are also an important cause of inflation, referred to in the words of the FNV as ‘graiaflation’.
“The distribution of profits can be different in the Netherlands”
Bolster thinks it makes no sense for economists to warn of a wage-price spiral due to wage increases. “There is now a profit price spiral and certainly not a wage price spiral,” says the union leader. “We’re responding to cost increases that have already occurred, so we’re at the end of that spiral and not the beginning.”
With this report, the FNV wants to send a signal to the companies under investigation. ‘We want to show that profit distribution can be done differently in the Netherlands. At the moment it is still unfair and this is unacceptable, it has to stop.’