SALARY & EMPLOYMENT POLICY

OPEN STATEMENT

At Pavan Geraedts, remuneration reflects the responsibility entrusted to a person within the practice. It is not a measurement of personal worth, social status or professional appearance.

Every employee begins as an Associate. The starting salary is the applicable Dutch statutory minimum wage. Previous experience, education and professional background are considered during assessment, but they do not remove the requirement to learn how the practice works, how client files are maintained and how professional responsibility is exercised within Pavan Geraedts.

Progression is based on demonstrated competence, reliability, judgement and conduct. It is not automatic and does not arise merely through time served.

We are committed to equal remuneration for equal work. Salary decisions are connected to position, responsibility and verified contribution, without distinction based on gender, identity, nationality, origin or background.

Every employee has access to the professional structure, remuneration bands, assessment principles and progression criteria. The purpose is not to reduce people to a scale. The purpose is to prevent salary decisions from becoming arbitrary, personal or opaque.

Salary Structure by Role (Gross, Including Holiday Allowance)

The following structure defines the gross annual professional remuneration and standard client rate associated with each position.

Annual remuneration includes the statutory 8% holiday allowance. The figures are based on a full-time-equivalent position. Part-time remuneration is calculated proportionately.

Note: Client rates exclude VAT. Business mediation is a separate professional service and is charged at €300 per hour, regardless of whether supporting work is performed by employees at another professional level.

The €100,000 amount is an absolute annual ceiling for personal remuneration attributable to professional work. It is not an automatic entitlement attached to the Senior Partner title.

Standard Employment Contract Structure

Every employment relationship is recorded in a written employment agreement governed by Dutch law. The agreement defines the position, contractual working hours, remuneration, holiday allowance, duration, notice arrangements, confidentiality, professional responsibilities and any applicable internal policies.

A probationary period is included only where Dutch law permits it and where it has been agreed in writing. No probationary period is used where the duration or nature of the employment agreement does not legally permit one.

The employment agreement, applicable Dutch legislation and any binding collective labour agreement prevail if they conflict with this policy.

Initial Compensation

Every new employee enters the practice as an Associate and begins at the applicable Dutch statutory minimum hourly wage.

From 1 July 2026, the statutory minimum hourly wage for employees aged 21 and over is €14.99 gross per hour.

Because the Netherlands applies an hourly minimum wage, the annual amount depends on the contractual number of working hours.

The applicable statutory rate is automatically adjusted whenever the Dutch minimum wage changes.

If a mandatory collective labour agreement, immigration salary threshold or another binding legal requirement requires higher remuneration, the mandatory amount applies.

The initial rate remains in effect during the first six months of employment. This period is used for onboarding, practical training and assessment within the working methods of the practice.

Post-Assessment Adjustment

After six months, the employee undergoes a formal professional assessment.

The assessment considers:

• Accuracy and completeness
• Quality of analysis
• Reliability and punctuality
• Client communication
• File and evidence management
• Professional conduct
• Risk awareness
• Ability to work independently
• Recognition of personal and professional limits
• Willingness to ask questions and escalate uncertainty

Following the assessment, one of three outcomes is possible:

• Continuation as Associate I at the existing statutory rate
• Progression to Associate II or Associate III, with an appropriate remuneration adjustment
• Non-renewal at the lawful end of a fixed-term agreement, or another lawful employment decision where the required standard has not been reached

A positive assessment does not automatically create a right to a particular salary increase. Any adjustment is confirmed in writing.

Growth Philosophy

Professional progression at Pavan Geraedts follows the structure:

Associate → Senior Associate → Principal Adviser → Partner → Senior Partner

Associates may progress internally through Associate I, Associate II and Associate III before being considered for promotion to Senior Associate.

Progression depends on demonstrated professional maturity, decision-making ability, technical competence, ethical conduct and the capacity to accept responsibility for the consequences of professional work.

Training completed through the Pavan Geraedts Academy or another recognised professional learning programme may contribute to an assessment. Training credits do not replace practical competence, performance or professional judgement.

Commercial performance is relevant but never decisive by itself. Revenue cannot compensate for weak professional judgement, poor documentation, inappropriate conduct or an inability to recognise risk.

Partnership is not merely a salary promotion. A Partner must accept genuine responsibility for engagement acceptance, client relationships, professional quality, colleagues and the continuity of the practice.

Policy Purpose

This policy is intended to provide:

• A lawful and transparent starting salary
• Equal remuneration for equal work
• Defined professional positions
• Visible salary boundaries
• Evidence-based progression
• Protection against arbitrary salary decisions
• A clear maximum remuneration
• Alignment between authority and responsibility
• Sustainable client pricing
• Long-term professional development

The policy protects both the employee and the practice. Employees can understand what is expected and how progression is assessed. The practice can demonstrate that remuneration and authority are supported by a consistent professional structure.

This policy does not create an automatic right to promotion, salary adjustment or bonus unless that right has been expressly confirmed in writing or incorporated into the employment agreement.

Annual Bonus Scheme

Pavan Geraedts may operate an annual collective bonus scheme where the practice has achieved a positive annual result and the conditions of this policy have been satisfied.

Eligibility Criteria

To participate in the annual bonus pool, an employee must:

• Have been continuously employed for at least 12 full calendar months during the relevant financial year
• Remain employed on the applicable eligibility or payment date, unless otherwise agreed in writing
• Have completed the required performance assessment
• Have achieved at least a satisfactory professional assessment
• Not be subject to a final unresolved disciplinary measure or material compliance concern
• Have complied with confidentiality, professional conduct and file-management requirements

Participation remains subject to the €100,000 maximum annual remuneration. No bonus payment may cause an individual’s total professional remuneration to exceed that ceiling.

Bonus Pool Definition

Where the bonus scheme is activated, Pavan Geraedts allocates 10% of its positive annual net result to the collective bonus pool.

For this purpose, the annual net result means the result after tax and depreciation, but before recognition of the bonus pool itself, as established through the adopted annual accounts.

A bonus pool is created only where:

• The annual result is positive
• The annual accounts have been completed and adopted
• The practice can meet its payment obligations
• Required tax, continuity and professional reserves have been maintained
• Payment is legally and financially responsible

The scheme does not create a bonus where there is no positive qualifying annual result.

Distribution Logic

The available bonus pool is divided equally among all eligible employees.

There is no weighting based on title, salary, billing rate or professional position. The bonus rewards collective contribution to the quality, continuity and result of the practice.

An employee whose payment would cause total annual professional remuneration to exceed €100,000 receives only the amount available below that ceiling.

Any unpaid excess remains with the practice and is not automatically redistributed unless management formally decides otherwise before the bonus calculation is finalised.

The bonus is variable remuneration. It does not become part of the employee’s fixed salary and does not create an entitlement to an equivalent payment in a later year.

Payout Timing

A provisional bonus calculation is prepared during the annual closing process.

The final calculation is made after the annual accounts have been completed and adopted and after eligibility has been verified.

Where all conditions have been satisfied, payment is made no later than 30 June of the following year.

Bonus payments are made gross and are subject to applicable wage tax, social-security deductions and payroll requirements.

The employee receives a written calculation showing the bonus pool, the number of eligible employees, the individual gross allocation and any adjustment required by the annual remuneration ceiling.