Booking.com works council appeals office attendance ruling

The works council (ondernemingsraad) of Booking.com is appealing against a ruling by the Amsterdam district court that allows the company to require employees to come to the office more often. The council announced the appeal on Tuesday.

At the end of October, the court let Booking.com make office attendance mandatory. The company wanted staff to spend at least 40% of their working time at the office. That figure had been only a recommendation, and about a quarter of employees met it.

The works council refused to consent to the change, so Booking.com went to court. The court found the company had sufficiently substantiated its interest in more contact at the office. Physical presence can help bonding, onboarding and training, and collaboration between teams, it said.

The council says the court did not apply the criteria of the Supreme Court (Hoge Raad) correctly and gave too little weight to important arguments. It also says Booking.com offered no substantive evidence that mandatory attendance improves morale or helps reach company goals.

In a letter, the council said: "To be clear, the works council has nothing against working in the office." It supports the current advice of 40% and shares the company's aims of innovation, learning and effective collaboration. What it disputes is that a mandatory rule achieves them.

Across the Netherlands, home working has barely moved lately. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) data show the average share of workers who work from home fell from 50.9% in the third quarter of 2022 to 44.7% in the second quarter of 2026. Since the start of 2023, it has stayed between 44.7% and 48.2%.

Booking.com said it is disappointed that the council chose to appeal. "We think it's important to strike a balance between letting employees work from home flexibly and getting people together in the office," the company said. Its spokesperson added that cooperation at the office remains essential.

Average home-working share has eased from 50.9% to 44.7% since 2022

% · 2022 Q3–2026 Q2

Average home-working share has eased from 50.9% to 44.7% since 2022 (%). From 50.9 in 2022 Q3 to 44.7 in 2026 Q2; highest 50.9 in 2022 Q3, lowest 44.7 in 2026 Q2. Source: CBS.

View data

Data: Average home-working share has eased from 50.9% to 44.7% since 2022

Period	%
2022 Q3	50.9
2022 Q4	48.4
2023 Q1	45.8
2023 Q2	45.3
2023 Q3	48.2
2023 Q4	45.1
2024 Q1	46.1
2024 Q2	45.3
2024 Q3	47.3
2024 Q4	44.8
2025 Q1	45.2
2025 Q2	44.9
2025 Q3	46
2025 Q4	44.8
2026 Q1	45.1
2026 Q2	44.7