2023-08-22 17:28:00
The shortage on the labor market has long been a real headache in the north of the country. The lack of skilled labor, as we know, risks hampering the competitiveness of businesses. Flanders might recruit in Wallonia but, in many cases, it is reluctant to do so. In West Flanders, for example, Voka, the umbrella organization of Flemish employers, has changed its tune. The federation believes that hiring Walloon workers is like the dancing procession of Echternach: the procedures are complicated, they take far too long. According to the Flemish bosses, the Walloon political power is slow when it comes to helping Walloons find work in Flanders. As a result, the Flemish bosses prefer to cast their nets abroad, outside of Europe itself. “We find what we are looking for there,” says Bert Mons, the boss of Voka in Kortrijk. “There are qualified profiles, ready to come and work with us as soon as possible”.
All-round scouting missions
The Flemish bosses do not skimp on recruitment resources. In an attempt to unearth good profiles, the Voka West-Vlaanderen organizes recruitment missions outside Europe, particularly in Mexico and India. Bert Mons from Voka West Flanders says that a large number of skilled workers, Mexicans and Indians, are ready to come to work in Flanders. “They have good language skills. They have shown that they want to invest themselves in their work while respecting the values that are ours”, underlines the boss. “We were inspired by Dutch and German best practices. The objective is not to poach personnel in these countries which really need it. That’s why we work closely with the local authorities”.
Towards an employment rate of 75% in Wallonia? “It’s not with scoops that we’re going to get there”
A “talent missies” recruitment mission, bringing together Flemish companies, was organized by Voka West-Vlaanderen in Mexico, another is planned for November in India. West Flanders, however, has an employment rate close to 80%. The concern is that the inactive in this province (out of a total of approximately 140,000 people) are long-term unemployed or people unable to work for a prolonged period. Bert Mons persists: “It will be difficult to find qualified profiles, we will have to find 50,000 by 2030”.
Inactive in their hammock…
Drawing on the nearby Walloon breeding ground to remedy the shortage of Flemish labor is less simple than one might imagine. About 6,800 Walloons already work in West Flanders. But these “transfers” would therefore come up once morest a lack of political will. It is said that the Walloon political power does not move enough to help Walloons find work in Flanders. Bert Mons believes that this situation causes “inactive people to stay in their hammocks.” He further specifies that 13,500 French workers (residing in the north of France) have found a job in Flanders.
Why the employment rate of Brussels residents should increase faster than that of Flemings and Walloons
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