Job creation in Belgium has come to a standstill. This is what De Tijd writes on Thursday based on an analysis of the latest employment figures from the National Bank. Total employment was lower in the second quarter of this year than in the three months before, the first decline since the beginning of 2020 and the start of the corona pandemic.
We are still waiting for the data for the third quarter.
The Belgian job engine has been slowing down for some time, but a contraction in employment on a quarterly basis is remarkable. Something like this has only happened six times since 2010: twice in 2012 and 2013, and in the first two quarters of 2020. After years of increasing tightness on the labor market, the turnaround now seems to have started.
Job creation in industry in particular took a huge hit. In the second quarter of 2024, the National Bank had about 3,500 fewer jobs than in the three months before.
More government jobs
2024 will also be characterized by many restructurings and bankruptcies. Just think of Van Hool, Ontex, Beaulieu, Audi Brussels and Janssen Pharmaceutica in Beerse. The total number of bankruptcies in Flanders has never been higher than now for this time of year and is heading for a record.
There was hardly any employment growth in most sectors in the first half of the year. The number of jobs in construction, trade and the catering industry has fallen both quarter on quarter and year on year. This was also the case in agriculture and fishing. The government, which also includes education and defense, is still adding thousands of net jobs on a quarterly basis.