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Finding a job in any foreign country can be hard as there will be obstacles such as different customs and different languages that may hinder your efforts. Hopefully language won’t be too much of an issue as you will either be able to speak the language or will be targeting English based companies. In the case of the Netherlands around 70% of the population can speak English, so if your Dutch isn’t up to scratch when you make the move, you should find communicating easier.

Here are a few pointers on finding a job in the Netherlands.

Internet

As with most things there days, the Internet is now one of the best resources to use for finding things. This is especially true in the world of recruitment and job hunting. There will be many Dutch based recruitment sites and jobs boards, but most of these will be in Dutch. So if you are looking for an English speaking role then, companies like Martin Ward Anderson Finance Recruitment services can help you find jobs in the Netherlands. The company focuses on jobs in finance such as banking jobs and public sector jobs, but if this is the area you are looking for then they are ideal.

Personal Contacts

Networking with people in your industry is a great way of finding out about job opportunities. How you deal with these contacts is up to you, but is not deemed appropriate to flat out ask people for a job. It is much easier to let your contacts know collectively that you are looking for work. This can be done with social sites like LinkedIn of Facebook.

Media Advertisements

Dutch Newspapers is a great source of finding job opportunities. Most Dutch papers have job sections in their Saturday editions and you can also find the job sections on their websites. Some Dutch papers to check out are the NRC Handelsblad, de Volkskrant, de Telegraaf and Algemeen Dagblad.

Temporary employment agencies

Uitzendbureaus are Dutch temporary employment agencies that are very common in the Netherlands. Most occupations can be found through temporary agencies but these are obviously not the best places to look if you want a permanent position.

While researching the state of financial recruitment and accountant jobs in the Netherlands we came across some interesting information on the views of the Dutch public when it came to the recent recession / financial crisis that we are having.

Due to a recent poll, the majority of people in the Netherlands think that the current financial crisis we are facing will come to an end in one to two years time.

The people in the Netherlands are confident that things will be sorted out sooner rather than later. Nearly half of the people who were asked thought that the current crisis will last between one to two years. A small, fifteen percent of the poll thought the crisis will be over within a year and a fifth are of the opinion that things will stay bad for two to three years.

These results were taken from a poll conducted by the central bank in the Netherlands, De Nederlandsche Bank. The poll was part of the bank’s quarterly report that also announces that 39 billion euros were lost last year by Dutch banks thanks to the current financial problems.

While the opinions of the Dutch people may seem optimistic, they do correspond to predictions from the economic policy unit that were recently released. These predictions from the CPB show that the economy in the Netherlands is expected to fall by 3.5% in 2009 and by 0.25% in 2010, then recovery is expected to start. Consumption levels are expected to stay the same during this period despite problems.

According to the bank’s poll, the Dutch public are planning to cut back on their spending. Half of the people interviewed said that they will reduce their spending as the think their purchasing power to diminish. This statistic is strange as it is generally expected that purchasing power will increase due to wage increases and improved unemployment benefits.

An average of 80 euros is the figure that people will be expecting to cut back on per month and around half of consumers are said to not be making large purchase until things get better.

When it comes to employment and jobs, half of respondents feel safe in their current jobs despite warning of a strong rise in employment. The main group of people who are worried about being laid off are from the low income groups which is understandable. Out of currently employed people around 40% think it will be difficult to find a new job.

When looking for a job in the Netherlands it is very common to use a specialist recruitment agency, especially if you are looking for a banking job or an accounting job. Much like in the UK they have the expertise that will help you find the best jobs as they have well established contacts.

Most Dutch companies use recruitment agencies to help find suitable staff for their positions. These recruitment companies can offer you permanent contracts directly with the companies, temporary placements or detachering which are fixed term contracts. Detachering is a type of contract that is often used for things like replacing staff with long term illness or jobs that only last the span of a project, say four months.

Some recruitment agencies work so that they will actually be your employer and will pay you your wage. This has the means you will receive flexibility and good employee benefits.

So if you are planning to relocate to the Netherlands for a new career, it is best to contact a specialist recruitment firm that will help your on your way.