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Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Belgium (RATIFICATION: 1969)

Article 1(2) of the Convention. Implementation of an active employment policy. Labour market trends. The Committee takes note of the information provided both by the Government and by the regions on the serious social and economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Belgian labour market. It notes the measures adopted by the Government to reduce the effects of the pandemic, including the temporary “Corona” unemployment regime, introduced for force majeure reasons, and the organization of teleworking. The Government reports on the pre-pandemic labour market indicators, which show positive trends in almost all areas, in the three regions and in all age groups. In this regard, the Committee notes with interest that the employment rate for women underwent the greatest change, with a narrowing of the employment rates between men and women, and an unemployment rate for women that was slightly lower than that for men. The Committee notes, moreover, that several measures were taken before the pandemic to boost employment and stimulate the labour market. These include the “Jobsdeal”, a panoply of 28 measures to promote employment, as well as the promulgation of two laws on social and fiscal matters (respectively, the Act of 7 April 2019 and the Act of 23 March 2019, amending the 1992 Income Tax Code). With regard to immigrant workers, the Government indicates that the Federal Public Service for Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue and the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism (UNIA) have developed a continuous socio-economic monitoring system of the situation of persons on the labour market, the latest report of which, from 2019, shows that despite a slight improvement in the situation, the origin of immigrant workers continues to be one of the obstacles to the socio-occupational integration of foreign nationals. These obstacles were amplified during the health crisis, especially for young, unskilled immigrants. In this regard, the Committee notes the Eurostat statistical data from 2020 on employment rates for persons aged 20 to 64 years, disaggregated by nationality and region. It particularly notes that the employment rate for third-country nationals (from outside the EU27) was lower (40.1 per cent for Belgium in 2020) than for Belgian nationals (71.5 per cent) or for EU27 nationals (70.2 per cent). Regarding the long-term unemployed, the Government indicates that the 2019 positive trends were disrupted by the COVID-19 crisis in 2020. It adds that certain categories of workers, such as young persons, non-European immigrants and low-skilled individuals were the hardest hit by the crisis and that, since March 2020, the number of unemployed jobseekers has increased. Accordingly, the Committee notes that the unemployment rate (for those aged 15 to 64 years) increased from 5.4 per cent in 2019 to 6.6 per cent in March 2021, and the employment rate (for those aged 20 to 64 years) dropped from 70.5 per cent in 2019 to 68.5 per cent in 2021. The Government states that, despite a certain stability, the fundamental “classic” challenges which confront the Belgian labour market are still present and, in certain cases, have in fact increased. The Committee notes that major measures have been taken in the Walloon Region, the Flemish Region and the German-speaking Community to stimulate the labour market and boost employment. In this regard, the Committee notes the reform of the Assistance to Promote Employment (APE) programme (Aide à la Promotion de l’Emploi) by the Walloon Regional Government, which entered into force on 1 January 2022. In respect of cooperation with the social partners, the Government indicates that an annual conference on employment is going to be organized with the federated entities, the social partners and other interested parties, to draw up and assess specific action plans with the goal of increasing the employment rate to 80 per cent by 2030. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide detailed and updated information, including statistical data, disaggregated by sex, age, economic sector and region, on the situation of the labour market, detailing the levels of employment, unemployment and underemployment. The Government is also requested to provide information on all response and recovery measures, taken in consultation with the social partners, and on the manner in which the measures taken have contributed to reducing the negative effect of the pandemic, especially in terms of opportunities for full, productive, freely chosen and sustainable employment, especially for the long-term unemployed and for migrant workers.

Youth employment. The Government reports the impact of COVID-19 on youth employment. It indicates that youth unemployment has risen again in the wake of the pandemic, after having fallen for several years. The Committee notes that the employment rate in Belgium for young people under the age of 25 years, which rose from 2018 (25 per cent) to 2019 (26.6 per cent), fell to 24.1 in 2020. The Committee notes, however, that the youth employment rate in the Walloon Region remained unchanged (19.1 per cent) between 2019 and 2020. The Government indicates that the precariousness of jobs held by young people has been accentuated, mainly because of their over-representation in the sectors most affected by the health crisis (catering, arts, entertainment and recreational activities). The Committee notes that, with the exception of the Walloon Region, the unemployment rate of young people under the age of 25 years in Belgium increased to 15.3 per cent in 2020. The Government indicates that the percentage of young people aged 18 to 24 years who have not graduated from upper secondary education and are no longer in education or training has been declining for several years. In 2020, the rate was 8.1 per cent, the lowest percentage in the last 20 years (9.8 per cent in the Walloon Region, 9.7 per cent in the Brussels-Capital Region and 6.7 per cent in the Flemish Region). The Committee notes in this regard that the NEET (not in employment, education or training) rate, which the Europe 2020 strategy aims to reduce to 8.2 per cent for young people aged 15 to 24 years, was 9.2 per cent in 2020 (7.3 per cent in the Flemish Region, 11.3 per cent in the Brussels-Capital Region and 11.7 per cent in the Walloon Region). With respect to employment promotion, the Government reports on the measures that have been taken to promote youth employment. These include the Starter Job Agreement, which consists of a work contract concluded as part of a back-to-work programme or a career transition programme between a young person and a public or private employer, and the Youth Guarantee proposed by the European Commission to combat youth unemployment in Europe, which from October 2020 commits European Union countries to guaranteeing every young person under 30 years of age employment, continuing education, an apprenticeship or a traineeship within four months of becoming unemployed or leaving education. The Government also reports on a number of schemes and programmes at the regional level to promote youth employment. In this regard, the Committee notes, in particular, the implementation of the employment schemes werkinleving voor jongeren, WIJ! (work experience programme for young people) and Dual Learning for young people in the Flemish Region, measures to promote youth employment, such as Aktif and EPU (Einstiegpraktikum (internship for transitioning into work)) in the German-speaking Community, and the programmes Impulsion – 25 ans (Drive to 25), Youth employment in the non-profit sector, the Youth Guarantee and the Starter Job Agreement, in the Walloon Region. It also notes that, in 2019, the Walloon Regional Government subsidized 375 Starter Job Agreement jobs (50.54 per cent of which were for women and 49.46 per cent for men) in 16 sectors of economic activity. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide detailed and updated information on the impact of the measures taken to combat youth unemployment, particularly in the context of the post-pandemic recovery, as well as information, including statistics disaggregated by age and sex, on young people’s access to sustainable employment, including young people with disabilities, young immigrants and young people without educational qualifications or training. The Government is also requested to provide information on consultations with youth representatives at the federal and regional levels, including representatives of young immigrants and other vulnerable groups.

Education and training policies. The Government reports that the three Communities (French, Flemish and German-speaking) are pursuing large-scale reforms to improve educational performance. These reforms include improved curricula, a thorough review of teacher training (the Flemish Region), language measures and pathways for linguistic integration (the Flemish Region), measures to make the teaching profession more attractive, as well as greater job security for new teachers, new performance targets and a roadmap for compulsory schooling in the French Community, and the implementation of a “Gesamtvision” (overarching vision) in the German-speaking Community. The Government also indicates that, to improve the inclusiveness of education, the compulsory schooling age has been lowered and efforts have been pursued to offer education that is more adapted to the specific needs of pupils, in particular by relying more on dual forms of training. The Government also reports on specific training measures taken at regional level, notably in the German-speaking Community (training for jobseekers, individual training in enterprises and technical and vocational training), and in the Walloon Region, where the shortage of skilled labour is linked to the profile of candidates not meeting the requirements of enterprises. In this regard, the Government indicates that, as part of the fight against labour shortages, a memorandum of understanding was concluded in August 2018 between the sectors of economic activity and the training funds in the Walloon Region. This agreement is broken down into three robust measures: an optimized training and insertion plan, the introduction of a financial incentive (€350) for training in occupations with a shortage of workers, and the action to “crackdown on shortages”. The Committee notes that, as part of the action to “crackdown on shortages”, the Forem market analysis service for employment and training and its partners offer more than 150 courses for job seekers, with a view to combatting workforce issues in 125 critical functions (including 75 occupations experiencing shortages) identified in the Walloon Region. It also notes that as of the end of December 2020, Forem and the skills centres had received 79 requests for “crackdown on shortages” training. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide detailed information on the impact of the reforms of the education system and on any measures taken or envisaged to ensure the coordination of education and vocational training policies with employment policies, and in particular to indicate how specific training opportunities are coordinated with the demand for skills and competencies in the labour market. The Government is also requested to provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to encourage groups of workers in vulnerable situations, such as migrant workers, workers with disabilities and older workers, and to optimize their professional skills.

Older workers. The Government indicates that as part of the Europe 2020 strategy, Belgium had set a target of 50 per cent employment among those aged 55 to 64 years. In this respect, measures have been taken to delay the effective retirement age and encourage the retention of workers. The Government also indicates that over the past 10 years, the employment rate of those over 55 years of age has been steadily increasing. The Committee notes that the target set under the Europe 2020 strategy was reached for the first time in 2018 and continued in 2020, despite the health crisis, with an employment rate of 53.3 per cent among people aged 55 to 64 years (55.7 per cent in Flanders, 48.8 per cent in Wallonia and 52.9 per cent in Brussels). The Committee notes that specific measures are being taken in the federated entities in favour of older workers. It also notes that in 2020 the gap between the employment rate of those aged 55 to 59 years (70.6 per cent) and that of those aged 60 to 64 years (34.3 per cent) remained significant. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the nature, scope and impact of active employment measures taken to reduce unemployment and increase the level of employment of older workers. It also requests the Government to provide information on specific measures taken or envisaged to address the needs of particular categories of older workers, such as workers aged 60 to 64 years.