Aart Jan de Geus

Aart Jan de Geus is the Deputy Secretary-General in charge of the Political Economy of Reform, preparations for the Ministerial Council Meeting and the Executive Committee in Special Session. Aart de Geus took up his functions in March 2007.
 
Aart de Geus, a Dutch national, was minister of social affairs and employment in the Netherlands from 2002 until February this year. As minister, Aart de Geus introduced major reforms in the Dutch social security system, notably by turning it into an activating system where citizens, employers and local authorities take their own responsibilities. During the four years of his tenure, he concluded major national agreements with social partners on wages, reforms of social security and tax-facilities for early retirement. He chaired the OECD Social Policy Ministerial Meeting in 2005 and has served in various functions at local, national and international level.

From 1998 until 2002, Aart de Geus was a partner in an Amsterdam-based company for strategy and management, where he worked in the fields of healthcare, pensions and human resource development.

Aart de Geus served as vice-chairman of the executive board of the National Federation of Christian Trade Unions from 1993 to 1998, where he focused on social security, health care, pensions, labour market policy, income policy and education. He had been a member of the Trade Union’s executive board since 1988. Prior to that, Aart de Geus worked as a lawyer in the industry sector of the Christian Trade Union.

Aart de Geus has a Law degree from Erasmus University in Rotterdam and post-graduate studies in Labour Law from Nijmegen University.

Aart de Geus is married and has three children.