Unemployment has risen with unprecedented speed in April. Those who are most affected are young people with flexible contracts.

In the month of April, 74,000 new unemployment benefits were claimed, while the overall number of people on benefits increased by 41,000. The reason this is lower than the 74,000 new claims is that people’s benefits run out after a certain amount of time, or they find work – either way, they don’t appear on the unemployment benefit register any more.

Unemployment has increased historically quickly: between March and April, it increased from 2.9% to 3.4%. This rise, in such a short amount of time, is unprecedented. But then, we live in unprecedented times.

Why have young people been hit the hardest?

Young people have been hit especially hard by this wave of unemployment. The industries most affected by coronavirus- restaurants and cafes, the cultural sector, etc- are those in which young people tend to work, and they tend to do so under flexible contracts. That means that businesses are able to fire them, or give them no more hours, far more easily than more established employees.

Massive increase in certain sectors

The strongest increase in unemployment per sector has also been reported by the UWV: the cleaning sector is the hardest hit, with a 91% increase in unemployment, followed by temporary employment agencies (+87%), retail trade (+69%), culture (+67%) and the restaurant and catering sector (+60%).

Second support package on its way

The government is expected to release details on its second support package for the economy today. The first NOW grant required businesses not to lay off employees, otherwise, they would be fined. This is expected to be changed with the second grant, meaning that yet more unemployment is likely, RTL Nieuws reports.

How should the government support the economy and especially young people? Share your ideas in the comments below.

Feature Image: Andrea Piacquadio/Pexels 

The Minister for Agriculture, Carola Schouten, says it is plausible that coronavirus has spread from a mink to a person, NOS reports. 

In April, it came to light that several mink farms across the country had been infected with coronavirus. At that point, it wasn’t clear that the virus could be transmitted from mink to human, though the opposite had clearly already occurred.

Now, it is likely that a worker at a mink farm in the Netherlands has been infected with coronavirus by a mink. Minister Schouten confirmed that there are similarities between the virus that the minks have on a particular farm and the virus that an employee has been infected with. This would be the first time in the Netherlands that a human had been infected by an animal with coronavirus.

Extra protective measures at mink farms, but no exterminations yet

This development has naturally made extra protective measures at mink farms necessary. Employees already had to wear protective clothing, but now there will be screening for the virus in all companies that breed minks, and no visitors will be allowed.

Schouten wants to avoid exterminating the minks if at all possible. It is not possible for the virus to spread into the air around the pens where the minks are kept, so the danger to the public should be minimal.

Research on other animals transmitting coronavirus continues

Research is also underway on other farm animals to see if they can be infected with the virus, and even more crucially, to see if they can transmit it to humans. Pigs are particularly under consideration here, but Schouten was quick to emphasise that no human has been infected by pigs, and no pigs have been infected yet with the virus.

It is known that pets can be infected with the virus, specifically cats and dogs. Like humans, cats and dogs should stay home until they recover from the virus. You should speak to your vet if you have concerns about your pet’s health.

Are the current protective measures at mink farms enough, or is it time to start thinking about more extreme solutions? Let us know in the comments below.

Feature Image: Pdreinders/Wikimedia Commons

The latest numbers on coronavirus in the Netherlands are out. 

As of today, a further 21 people have died in the Netherlands, maintaining the current trend of between 15 and 40 people dying each day.

108 more people have tested positive for the virus today, and 34 people have been admitted to hospital because of coronavirus. These numbers all indicate that the current social distancing rules are working.

Catering industry to reopen at midday on 1 June

The catering industry will open at 12:00 on 1 June. There won’t be any exceptions for beach clubs, despite pleas from 70 of them in The Hague. It’s not yet clear if the beach clubs will go ahead and break the rules and reopen tomorrow, as they have threatened. There will be a press conference tonight from Rutte and De Jonge.

Dutch marble racers get famous

And to close, here’s a bit of light news: two Dutch marble racers have gained international fame after being featured on John Oliver’s show, “Last night with John Oliver”. Instead of contact sports in these coronavirus times, marble racing is the way to go.

You can follow DutchReview on Facebook for more coronavirus updates in the Netherlands. 

Feature Image: DutchReview/Canva

The catering industry can reopen on 1 June at midday, according to advice from mayors to the cabinet. It is likely that the cabinet will take this advice on board, RTL Nieuws reports.

The horeca sector will be allowed to reopen on 1 June, but not at midnight, as some had expected. The government wants to avoid a huge rush to cafes and bars, and generally to reduce the amount of partying that the reopening of the catering industry could inspire. For that reason, cafes, restaurants and bars will be reopening at midday on 1 June.

Beach clubs in The Hague still want to open early

Yesterday, we reported that beach clubs in The Hague were threatening to reopen early, this Wednesday, flaunting government regulations in doing so. The sector is under severe financial pressure at the moment, so 70 beach clubs wrote to The Hague municipality to ask for permission to open early.

Yesterday evening, the municipality responded, denying permission to reopen early. It’s not yet clear if (some of) the beach clubs will decide to reopen on Wednesday anyway.

Press conference tonight

There will also be a press conference this evening from Prime Minister Rutte and Minister de Jonge, when we’ll get an update on how the government planning to carry out the relaxations of the coronavirus rules on 1 June.

Would you support beach clubs reopening early? Let us know in the comments below. 

Feature Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen/Supplied

The RIVM has published the latest count of coronavirus cases in the Netherlands.

As of today, 146 more cases have been reported in the Netherlands, bringing the total to 44,141 cases countrywide.

In regards to serious cases of the coronavirus, 27 more people have ended up in the hospital.

Lastly and unfortunately, 14 more people have died from the virus, with 5,694 total reported deaths in the country since the outbreak begun.

Number of coronavirus ICU patients increases for the first time in over a month

The number of people with coronavirus in intensive care has gone up slightly for the first time since 11 April. Since that date, fewer coronavirus patients were in ICU beds each day. On Sunday, that increased by 3 to 349. The figures for today have not yet been released, so it remains to be seen if this is a blip or the beginning of a worrying trend.

High schools in a 1.5m society

High schools will reopen on 2 June, but they need to find a way to allow students to keep 1.5m from each other, unlike primary schools. So, different solutions are being trialled, with vulnerable students and students who need to do their education physically in the school building are being prioritised.

Corona-delayed students will get refund on tuition fee

HBO, MBO and university students who are dealing with a delay in graduation as a result of the coronavirus crisis will get a refund of three months’ worth of tuition fee. There will also be extra grants for students who rely on them, but whose grants will now run out before they graduate as a result of the coronavirus crisis.

Hague beach clubs breach coronavirus regulations and plan early reopening

70 beach clubs in The Hague are planning to reopen early this Wednesday, a few days ahead of 1 June, when they are legally allowed to reopen. If the municipality will not allow them to open and give them fines, they will need to do so to the 70 beach operators. And according to them, “If we go bankrupt anyway, such a ticket makes little difference.”

Dutch artwork to take the place of advertisements

The Rembrandt Foundation is planning to liven up city streets with Dutch art. The plan is to showcase famous Dutch works of art in different open spaces throughout the Netherlands. This includes bus stations in over 280 Dutch municipalities. The artworks that will be showcased have been selected by the public.

You can follow DutchReview on Facebook for more updates on coronavirus in the Netherlands. 

Feature Image: DutchReview/Canva