Only for employees
Reorganization at APG
Is your work changing through the pension reform or the announced reorganization, or is there a departure proposal on the table?
This page explains your position under Dutch employment law, which applies to everyone working in the Netherlands, including highly skilled migrants and international staff. APG is one of the largest pension administrators in the Netherlands: it handles the pension administration and asset management for pension funds, including ABP. It is a private company owned by pension funds; you have an ordinary employment contract there with your own collective agreement, and there is no question of civil-service law. In late 2025 APG announced that it would significantly reduce its organisation over the coming years, phased through to around 2030. The trigger is distinctive: APG is in the middle of the biggest pension reform ever, the transition to the new pension system, which makes the work peak now but change afterwards. For you it is therefore not only about today, but also about how your role moves with the transition and with the funds APG serves.
Does this apply to you?
- Your role falls under the announced multi-year reduction
- Your work is changing through the transition to the new pension system
- Your task shifts because a fund or contract changes
- You are redundant, or you are taking it into account
- You have received a departure arrangement or settlement agreement
Why employees come to ReorgLegal
ReorgLegal specializes in reorganizations and works exclusively for employees, never for employers. We assess your proposal and stand beside you.
Do not wait too long. Reorganizations often come with short response deadlines. Have a proposal assessed before you agree to it.
The situation at APG
At APG this is not a company collapsing, but an administrator adjusting its organisation to a changing pension world.
An announced, phased reduction
APG has indicated that it will make the organisation smaller step by step over the coming years. Part of that the company wants to absorb through natural attrition and the ending of temporary contracts, but forced dismissals are not ruled out. How many roles it ultimately affects and which will become clear in the coming period. The works council and the unions are involved.
The pension reform is changing the work
The trigger is connected to the transition to the new pension system. That transition requires a great deal of complex work now, from administration to systems, but will change shape afterwards. In addition, a sharper focus in asset management and further automation play a part. For you, what matters most is where your role stands in that movement.
A multi-year reorganization is carried out in phases. This page shows the picture in July 2026.
In brief
- APG is a large pension administrator, with sites in Heerlen and Amsterdam among others
- It handles pension administration and asset management for pension funds
- APG is a private company owned by pension funds; you are not a civil servant
- You have an employment contract under APG's own collective agreement
- In late 2025 a multi-year reduction was announced, phased through to around 2030
- The transition to the new pension system is changing the work
Your work is tied to the pension transition
What makes working at APG distinctive now is that the transition to the new pension system makes the work both busy and uncertain at the same time. That calls for looking ahead.
A peak now, a different need later
The transition to the new system currently requires a lot of specialist work: converting schemes, adapting systems and running old and new administrations side by side. That work peaks now, but once the transition is largely behind us, the need changes. Your role can therefore be indispensable today and still change later.
Specialist knowledge and automation
APG works with highly specialist pension and IT knowledge. That can make your position stronger, because such knowledge is not easily replaced. At the same time, automation can take over part of the work. A change of role is not an automatic dismissal, but it pays to know early whether your role moves along or shrinks.
Is your role changing through the transition? Have your position looked at.
Watch these points about your role
- Whether your work is mainly transition work or lasting work
- Whether your role moves along or shrinks after the transition
- Whether automation shifts your tasks
- Whether an offered role is genuinely suitable
- Whether retraining into other work is at issue
APG works for funds, not for itself
APG is an administrator: it works on behalf of pension funds. As a result your work depends not only on APG itself, but also on the funds it serves.
If a contract changes, the work changes
A large part of the work at APG stems from contracts with pension funds. If such an assignment shifts, or a fund moves part of the work to another administrator, that affects the people tied to that work. That is an industry risk separate from your own performance, but it can affect your role.
Transfer of undertaking
If work moves to another administrator, there may, in certain circumstances, be a transfer of undertaking. Whether that is so depends on an overall assessment of all the relevant facts and circumstances, including the way the activities are transferred and whether the economic entity retains its identity. If those conditions are met, employees can in principle transfer to the new administrator while keeping their rights. Have that assessed as soon as your work is connected to a fund or contract that is changing.
Is your role tied to a fund or contract that is changing? Have it clarified.
Find this out
- Which fund or contract your work is tied to
- Whether your role returns in the new set-up or changes
- Whether a transfer of undertaking applies when work is handed over
- Whether reassignment within APG is in view for you
- What any social plan offers you
How a reorganization at APG unfolds
A dismissal on economic grounds goes through fixed statutory steps. At each step you can have your position weighed.
Justification and advice
APG must make it plausible that your role is disappearing and put a reorganization to the works council for advice. If a reorganization affects many roles in a short period, the rules on collective redundancy may come into play; they only require notification to the UWV and consultation with the unions once the statutory conditions and threshold are met.
Selection and the reflection principle
Which employee becomes redundant does not rest with the employer alone. Where roles are interchangeable, the reflection principle essentially determines the order, subject to the statutory exceptions. Which group counts as the unit follows from the structure of the organization and the Dismissal Regulation. For work strongly tied to the transition or to a fund, that delimitation is often a point of attention.
Reassignment within APG
Before dismissal is at issue, it must be examined whether there is a suitable role for you, if necessary after training and within a reasonable period. What matters is whether those other positions belong to the company or group for which your employer has a reassignment obligation under Article 7:669 of the Dutch Civil Code and the Dismissal Regulation. At an organisation with administration, IT and asset management, the range of roles can be broad, but also highly specialist.
At each step there is something to do
- Ask whether your role is eliminated, changed or moves with the transition
- Keep your employment contract, job description, payslips and the proposal
- Have someone check which group the reflection was applied to
- Ask which suitable roles within APG are open to you
- Do not take a final decision before your position is assessed
What does this mean for you?
A reorganization at APG follows the statutory rules for economic dismissal, supplemented by the APG collective agreement and any social plan. On each of those points you can arrange more than an announcement shows at first glance.
Work that peaks now and changes later
The transition to the new pension system requires a lot of work now, but the need changes afterwards. Your role can be indispensable today and still change later, which raises different questions than an ordinary contraction.
A selection that can be checked
Within interchangeable roles, the reflection principle essentially determines who becomes redundant, subject to the statutory exceptions. Which unit counts depends on how APG is structured and on the Dismissal Regulation.
Your compensation
If your employment ends on APG's initiative and reassignment is not possible, there is in principle a right to the statutory transition payment, unless a statutory exception applies. If a social plan offers an additional provision, that is generally on top of it.
The settlement agreement
If you arrange a departure by agreement, it is recorded in a settlement agreement. It states, among other things, your end date and the compensation. Whether you keep your unemployment benefit depends partly on the wording, so have the document checked before you sign.
What you can do now
If the reorganization or the transition affects your work, map out your position before you agree to another role or a departure. Because the reduction runs over several years, early insight is especially valuable.
- Find out whether your work is transition work or lasting work
- Check which fund or contract your role is tied to
- Keep your employment contract, job description and recent payslips
- Have the reflection recalculated if you may become redundant
- Ask which suitable roles within APG are open to you
- With many roles affected, see whether collective redundancy is at issue
- Have a settlement agreement reviewed before you sign
Is there a proposal for another role or a settlement agreement? Put it before us before you sign.
When should you involve us?
- Your role falls under the announced reduction
- Your work is tied to a fund or contract that is changing
- You are reassigned or offered another role
- You doubt whether an offered role is suitable
- Your response deadline is running and you want to know where you stand
Frequently asked questions
These are questions APG employees put to us in practice.
Is there a proposal for another role or a settlement agreement on your table? Have us review it.
My work is mainly transition work. Will I be superfluous later?
Not as a matter of course. The transition to the new system requires a lot of work now, and it is not yet clear how much of that will fall away later. If your role is eliminated, APG must first examine whether there is a suitable role for you, if necessary after retraining. Ask us for an assessment once you have more clarity.
A fund is moving part of the work to another administrator. How does that affect me?
If work moves to another administrator, there may, in certain circumstances, be a transfer of undertaking. Whether that is so depends on an overall assessment of all the facts and circumstances, including the way the activities are transferred and whether the economic entity retains its identity. If that is the case, employees can in principle transfer while keeping their rights. Have it assessed what the handover means for your role.
I have very specialist pension or IT knowledge. Do I stand stronger?
Specialist knowledge can make your position stronger, because it is hard to replace. At the same time, automation can take over part of the work, and not every role is interchangeable with another. Whether that works to your advantage depends on the reorganization; have it assessed.
Am I entitled to compensation, and does a social plan apply?
If your employment ends on APG's initiative, there is in principle a right to the statutory transition payment, unless a statutory exception applies. If a social plan applies to the reorganization, it may contain an additional provision; whether it does depends on the agreements made about it. Have your case assessed.
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