The Higher Employment Council (CSE), comprising experts from federal authorities, regions, and academia, has released its report on the state of Belgium's labor market. The document highlights modest employment growth, below its long-term average, and emphasizes the importance of increased inter-sectoral mobility to address transformations related to artificial intelligence, digitalization, the low-carbon transition, and population aging. Adapting employment policies, continuous training, and professional mobility support are deemed essential.
The Belgian economy is projected to grow by 0.6% in 2026, a weaker forecast than the 1.1% in 2025, amidst geopolitical tensions and rising energy prices. Employment increased by 0.4% in 2025, primarily in services, while industry and construction continue to shed jobs. The employment rate for ages 20-64 stands at 72.8%, falling short of the 80% target for 2030, with significant regional disparities: 77.3% in Flanders, 67.9% in Wallonia, and 63.9% in Brussels. The number of job seekers rose by approximately 30,000 in 2025, bringing the unemployment rate to 6.2%, projected to reach 6.6% in 2026.
Three major reforms are impacting the labor market: the pension reform, new measures for long-term sick individuals, and the unemployment reform. The latter limits unemployment benefits to a maximum of two years, based on professional history, affecting over 200,000 people. For young people, the duration of insertion allowances is reduced to one year, and those without a higher secondary education certificate will no longer be eligible. Initial results on the return to employment for those affected by these reforms are still provisional.
The CSE identifies four priorities to address structural changes: increasing labor market participation (youth, experienced workers, immigrants, people with disabilities or long-term illness, women), adapting skills to economic transformations through education and continuous training, facilitating professional transitions by removing mobility barriers and strengthening regional service cooperation, and finally, enhancing the evaluation of public policies and the use of administrative data for research.
