Christina is 58 years old. In 2017, following the death of her employer, she found herself without work. “I expected to find a job quickly”, she recalls. But for 5 years, the search for employment punctuates his days. In vain. “I send between 10 and 20 CVs a day. By email and sometimes also by post”, she tells us. And despite this, the result is always the same. No or few answers, she says. “When people deign to answer me, it’s often to tell me that I’m 58 years old. We think maybe we’re going to fall asleep on our computer”she laments via the orange button Alert us.
I always get the same answer, well when there is one
Determined to return to work, she explains to us that she has obtained syllabi in order to learn medical language and thus to apply for hospital secretaries. “I always get the same answer. Well, when there is one… I am told ‘Yes, there are interesting skills. But given my age, I cannot be proactive enough. However, I cannot I don’t find myself in a bedridden state yet”she breathes.
This Brussels resident spends nearly two hours a day scrutinizing offers and responding to them. She is interested in many areas with a certain preference for jobs with a social dimension. “I like jobs where you have to listen”, she explains. The 50-year-old offers her services everywhere, even recently at Haren prison. But when she receives an answer, she is always negative. “I don’t even receive an interview offer”she breathes.
Today, she regrets not being able to defend her candidacy and show employers that she is full of motivation. Registered as unemployed, the return to work presents a social and personal need as well as a financial one. “I always made sure not to let go”she assures.
Employment rate of Belgians aged 55-64: 55%
This experience is evident in the numbers. In Belgium, the employment rate of 20-54 year olds is 76%. But it is 55% for Belgians aged 55 to 64. Our country is one of the worst European students, far from Germany and the Nordic countries in particular.
There are a lot of misconceptions from employers regarding engaging older workers.
Sébastien Delfosse, director of Manpower Belgium, notices this. “There are indeed a lot of a priori of employers on the commitment of older workers, on the one hand on their capacities to manage new technologies or to be up to date on new ways of working. on the other hand, on the cost that an older worker can represent”he explains.
Activate all workers who are of working age
However, Belgium must respond to two major issues: by 2030, the employment rate must reach 80% and there must be a significant shortage of labor in several sectors. “When we see the labor shortage, we will have no choice but to activate all the workers who are of working age and probably sometimes to make more training efforts to enable them to find a job where there is still demand and structural needs”believes Sébastien Delfosse.
Before adding: “Lifelong training to prevent older workers leaving the labor market without having the skills required to be able to easily find a job in another sector. I think the government can also work on career changes to other sectors and training of this type. But there is also a lot of work. We have to change the perception in the labor market and in society. We are all going to have to work longer and we all need to have access to employment for longer”.
According to figures provided by the FPS Employment, it can be seen that the proportion of workers aged 55-64 is the highest in the agricultural sector. The sectors where they are, on the contrary, the least represented are information/communication and catering.
