People & Organisation Operations Specialist

The Ocean Cleanup is seeking a full-time People & Organisation Operations Specialist in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The role involves maintaining employee records, ensuring compliance with Dutch labor laws, supporting recruitment, and managing employee wellbeing policies. Candidates should have at least 3 years of HR experience and be fluent in Dutch and English. This position is crucial for supporting the organization's mission to eliminate ocean plastic.
POSTED: 26th MAY 2025
STARTING DATE: As soon as possible
FULL TIME, ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS

MISSION TO METRICS

The mission of The Ocean Cleanup is to develop and scale technologies to rid the world’s oceans of plastic.

The P&O team plays a vital role in making that mission possible by enabling our people to thrive. We translate ambition into action by attracting purpose-driven talent, supporting our teams through every stage of the employee journey, ensuring full compliance with employment laws and payroll processes, and providing learning & development support to all our staff members.

We’re looking for a P&O Operations Specialist who thrives on structure, has a sharp eye for detail, and enjoys solving people-related puzzles—big and small. If you’re excited to be part of a fast-paced, international team and contribute behind the scenes to a cleaner future, this is the role for you.

THE ASSIGNMENT

As our P&O Ops Specialist, you'll maintain accurate employee records and ensure compliance with Dutch labor regulations while managing interactions with the UWV, Arbodienst, and IND. You'll oversee employee insurances, occupational health services, and our Sickness and Wellbeing policy, including absence tracking and reintegration processes. Additionally, you'll support recruitment activities through candidate assessments and interview scheduling. This hands-on role combines administrative precision with meaningful employee support, making a direct impact on our workplace operations.

RESPONSIBILITIES
• Maintain accurate employee records in our HR systems and for our monthly reporting.
• Support the company's interactions with the UWV and the Arbodienst, and the relevant employee insurances. Occupational Health and Safety Services.
• Support with all IND related processes
• Support with our Sickness and Wellbeing policy.
• Support absence and leave registration, including sick leave in line with Dutch legislation. This includes re-integration processes.
• Assist in recruitment activities: such as candidate assessments and interview scheduling.

This role is also a great opportunity to gain experience by supporting the whole P&O team in several tasks:
• Handling HR administrative tasks, including employment contracts, onboarding, offboarding, and personnel changes.
• Managing EOR, Contractors, Interns, Student Workers
• Processing monthly Dutch payroll in collaboration with external payroll providers.
• Helping coordinate performance review cycles, development planning, and engagement survey moments across the organization
• Contributing to People Related projects and continuous process improvements.

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

“Even if you don’t meet every professional qualification listed, we strongly encourage you to apply if you believe you have the right skills, experience, and motivation to contribute to our mission. We recognize that talent and potential come in many forms, and we value diverse perspectives and unconventional career paths. If you’re passionate about the work we do and confident in your ability to make an impact, don’t hesitate to submit your application—we’d love to hear from you”
• Fluent in Dutch and English (spoken and written).
• Minimum 3 years of relevant HR experience, preferably in an international or Dutch company.
• Previous experience with Dutch payroll processes is highly desirable.
• Solid understanding of Dutch labor law and HR best practices.
• Prior experience with UWV, Arbodienst and IND procedures.
• Strong administrative skills and attention to detail.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office and HR systems, ideally Personio.
• Previous recruitment experience.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

PERSONAL QUALIFICATIONS
• This role is ideal for a real people person.
• You are proactive, curious, and not afraid to ask questions.
• You are passionate about employee growth, learning, and building a culture of feedback and accountability.
• You can balance precision with a human approach.
• You feel at home in a mission-driven environment.
• You enjoy collaborating across cultures, time zones, and functions.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS
• Starting date - Asap
• Location – Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
• Please note: because we are a non-profit, our salaries reflect that of an organization fully reliant on donations rather than that of a commercial entity. Conducting a pre-employment check may be part of this recruitment process. At The Ocean Cleanup, we believe we are stronger together, while harnessing the uniqueness each individual brings. That is why we take a fair, equal opportunity, and transparent approach to hiring and welcome special needs requests.