Only for employees
Reorganization at Shell
Has Shell announced that your position is being eliminated, or have you received a dismissal proposal or an offer under the redundancy scheme?
Are you facing a reorganization at Shell in the Netherlands? At the industrial sites in Pernis and Moerdijk there are improvement programmes and a proposed reorganization, while Shell is cutting costs and simplifying its organization worldwide. What makes your situation at Shell distinctive is that the consequences are not set out in a freshly negotiated social plan agreed with the unions, but largely in a general redundancy scheme. This page explains your position under Dutch employment law, which applies to everyone working in the Netherlands, including highly skilled migrants and international staff, before you sign anything.
Does this apply to you?
- Your position is being eliminated or your team is being restructured
- You have been declared redundant or are at risk of it
- You have received an offer under the redundancy scheme
- You work at the refinery, in chemicals, or in an office or R&D role
- You have received a settlement agreement
Why employees turn to ReorgLegal
ReorgLegal specialises in reorganizations and works solely 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 any proposal assessed before you agree to it.
The situation at Shell
At Shell in the Netherlands there are reorganizations and improvement programmes at various sites, the best known of which is the proposed reorganization at the Moerdijk chemical site.
Cost focus and operational pressures
In recent years Shell has been driving hard on cost reduction and a simpler organization worldwide. In the Netherlands this translates, among other things, to the chemical and refining activities in Pernis and Moerdijk, where margins, energy and CO2 costs and international competition are under pressure. At those sites there are improvement programmes and, in Moerdijk, a proposed reorganization.
Moerdijk and Pernis
The proposed reorganization in Moerdijk aims to let the site operate more independently and to simplify operations, partly in connection with chemical sites in the United States. According to the unions, positions are being eliminated and new ones are also being created, with not everyone able to be redeployed. The plans are going through a co-determination process; the works council must give its view on parts of it.
No confirmed number of dismissals yet
As far as is known, Shell has not published a confirmed number of forced dismissals for the Netherlands. We therefore do not adopt any figure that has not been confirmed. The fact that the scale is not yet fixed does not mean you can wait: as soon as your position comes into view, it is wise to have your situation assessed.
The figures and arrangements around a reorganization can change. This page was last updated in July 2026; the facts shown apply as far as known at that time.
In short
- Proposed reorganization in Moerdijk, improvement programmes in Pernis
- Reason: cost focus, margins and energy costs in chemicals
- Positions are eliminated, some new ones are created
- The co-determination process via the works council is still ongoing
- No confirmed number of dismissals for the Netherlands known
- Have your situation assessed before you sign
A redundancy scheme instead of a new social plan
What sets your situation at Shell apart is how the consequences of the reorganization are cushioned. Shell does not want to agree a separate social plan with the unions on this and refers to an existing, general redundancy scheme.
What this is
At Shell, the handling of redundancy runs largely through the national redundancy scheme. That scheme was agreed with the central works council (COR) of Shell Nederland, so with the co-determination body and not with the trade unions. It is a standing scheme that can be applied to any reorganization and is not renegotiated for each one. The trade unions FNV and CNV are calling for a separate social plan agreed with them and consider the current scheme insufficient. For now, Shell is sticking to the existing scheme.
Why this matters for you
The scheme contains general arrangements that were not drawn up specifically for this reorganization. Your own position, years of service, role and the precise terms then carry more weight. That is exactly why an independent assessment of your offer is valuable.
Not sure what the scheme offers you? Have your situation assessed before you agree.
What to watch for
- Which scheme or arrangements exactly apply to you
- Whether the compensation matches your years of service and salary
- What is arranged for reassignment and support
- Whether the statutory transition payment is correctly included
- The response deadline and the final discharge in the offer
How does a reorganization at Shell work?
A redundancy process at Shell runs through fixed phases, from defining which positions are affected to a possible departure. In each phase there are moments where you can influence the outcome.
Which positions are eliminated and who is affected
Shell first maps out which positions are being eliminated and which positions count as mutually interchangeable. Within such a group of interchangeable positions the order of dismissal is not Shell's to choose freely: in principle the reflection principle applies, subject to the statutory exceptions to it. If that definition or its application is imprecise, that can affect your place in the ranking.
Job-to-job and reassignment
On top of the statutory reassignment obligation, Shell works with a job-to-job approach. If your position becomes redundant, Shell may not simply let you go: it must first examine whether a suitable position is available for you within a reasonable period and, where needed, after retraining. Departure is only at issue once that examination yields nothing. The unions indicated that Shell expects not to be able to redeploy everyone.
An offer or a procedure
If no suitable work is available, you will usually receive an offer to leave by mutual consent through a settlement agreement based on the redundancy scheme. If you do not agree to that, Shell can turn to the UWV for a dismissal permit. In both cases it pays to have the documents checked before you commit.
You can steer at every phase
- At the announcement: request the redundancy scheme and your status in writing
- If redundant: have the reflection principle and the definition of positions recalculated
- On a reassignment offer: check whether the role is genuinely suitable
- On an offer to leave: commit to nothing without review
What does this mean for you?
A reorganization at Shell follows the statutory rules that govern your rights in an economic dismissal, supplemented by the collective agreement and the redundancy scheme. You have rights at each of these points.
Selection along fixed rules
Shell does not decide at its own discretion who becomes redundant. Within interchangeable positions the reflection principle applies in principle, subject to the statutory exceptions. If the grouping or the ranking is wrong, that can work in your favour.
Suitable work first
Dismissal is only permitted after an examination of reassignment, within a reasonable period and, where needed, after retraining, with job-to-job support. If that examination is missing or amounts to little, a dismissal procedure can fall through.
Your compensation
If you leave at Shell's initiative, you are usually entitled to the statutory transition payment, unless the redundancy scheme provides a different or additional compensation. What is appropriate in your case depends on the scheme, your years of service and your salary and deserves its own assessment.
The settlement agreement
A departure by mutual consent is recorded by Shell in a settlement agreement. Only sign it once its terms and their consequences for you have been checked.
Industry, office and international knowledge workers
Shell's workforce in the Netherlands is very diverse, and your rights and points of attention depend on the kind of role you hold.
Collective-agreement staff at refinery and chemicals
Large parts of the refinery and chemicals operations in Pernis and Moerdijk are covered by the Shell Nederland Raffinaderij en Chemie collective agreement, which runs until early 2028. If you work under this collective agreement, your terms and the arrangements around redundancy are partly collectively regulated. It is worth checking which provisions apply to your role.
Office, staff and R&D roles
Some employees, including many office, staff and research roles, fall outside this collective agreement. For that group the individual employment contract and the redundancy scheme often apply. Bonus and share arrangements can then also play a role in a departure.
Working at Shell as an international?
At sites such as the technology centre in Amsterdam, many international knowledge workers are employed. If you work on a highly skilled migrant permit, dismissal also has consequences for your residence rights and search periods apply. For that situation there is separate information on dismissal as an international and on shares and bonus on dismissal.
Your role, your rules
- Collective-agreement role: look at the collective arrangements and the scheme
- Office or R&D role: your contract and the redundancy scheme
- Bonus or shares: have it checked what is retained on departure
- International: watch residence rights and search periods
What you can do now
Is there a reorganization at Shell in which your position comes into view? Then it helps to work through the points below before you commit to anything. The sooner you know where you stand, the more options usually stay open.
- Request the collective agreement, the redundancy scheme and your own proposal in writing
- Have the reflection principle and the grouping of positions recalculated
- Weigh whether an offered role really suits you
- Check that the compensation matches your years of service and salary
- Do not commit to a settlement agreement without having it reviewed
Is there a dismissal proposal or a settlement agreement from Shell on the table? Put it before us before you make an irreversible choice.
When to involve us?
- A settlement agreement from Shell is waiting for you
- Your position is being eliminated or your team is being reorganized
- You doubt whether the compensation or the reassignment offer is right
- You work as an international and fear for your residence rights
- There is a short response deadline on your proposal
Frequently asked questions
These are questions Shell staff regularly put to us.
Is there a dismissal proposal or settlement agreement in front of you? Put it before us for a review.
Is there a social plan at Shell?
Shell does not want to agree a separate social plan with the unions on this and refers to an existing, general redundancy scheme that was agreed with the central works council (COR). The unions are calling for a more extensive plan. Such a redundancy scheme does not automatically carry the same legal status as a social plan agreed with the trade unions. For you this means that an independent assessment of your own offer can be all the more valuable.
Will I receive compensation?
If you leave at Shell's initiative and reassignment does not succeed, you are usually entitled to the statutory transition payment, unless the redundancy scheme provides a different or additional compensation. What applies in your case depends on the scheme, your years of service and your salary.
How many jobs will disappear?
As far as is known, Shell has not published a confirmed number of forced dismissals for the Netherlands. We do not adopt any unconfirmed figure. What is clear is that positions are being eliminated and that not everyone can be redeployed.
What if I am declared redundant?
Redundancy is an intermediate step and not yet a settled dismissal. If the reflection principle is applied incorrectly or the reassignment is insufficiently examined, that can strengthen your position.
Received a settlement agreement? Get a free review.
Upload your agreement and we will assess your situation, free and without obligation. On business days we respond within 1 hour. Your legal fees are usually covered by your employer.
Start free review