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Unleashing talent in Brussels, Belgium

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ABOUT THE OECD LOCAL EMPLOYMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (LEED) PROGRAMME The Programme’s mission is to build vibrant communities with more and better-quality jobs for all. It supports national and local governments through tailored reviews, capacity building, research and reports on innovative approaches to local development.

ABOUT THIS POLICY HIGHLIGHTS This document outlines the key points from the report OECD Reviews of Local Job Creation: Unleashing Talent in Brussels, Belgium. The report provides an overview of the Brussels-Capital Region's labour market and analyses employment and vocational training policies in the region. It is part of the Programme of Work of the OECD's Local Economic and Employment Development (LEED) Programme.

Unleashing talent in Brussels, Belgium The full book is available at: https://www.oecd.org/employment/unleashing-talentin-brussels-belgium-7a495020-en.htm

CONTACTS Kristine Langenbucher  Kristine.Langenbucher@oecd.org

Dr. Lars Ludolph  Lars.Ludolph@oecd.org

Lucas Leblanc  Lucas.leblanc@oecd.org

OECD Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities OECD 2023 This document is published under the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of OECD member countries. The document and any map included herein are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area.

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Brussels: City of talent The Brussels-Capital Region attracts talent from Belgium, Europe, and around the world The Brussels-Capital Region is the largest commuting zone in Belgium. The population of the Brussels-Capital Region was approximately 1.2 million inhabitants in 2021 compared to roughly 6.7 million in Flanders and 3.7 million in Wallonia, the other two regions of Belgium. There are over 824 000 working-age inhabitants (defined as those aged 15-64 years) in the Brussels-Capital Region. While the surface area of the Brussels-Capital Region covers only 162 square kilometres, its functional urban area – or commuting zone – extends into parts of both the Flemish and Walloon Regions. The commuting zone is home to over 3.3 million people – nearly 3 times more than live in the region alone – and covering more than 4 800 square kilometres – nearly 30 times the surface area of the region. Consequently, the Brussels-Capital Region’s labour market is characterised by significant cross-regional commuting. In 2021, among 796 000 workers in the Brussels-Capital Region, 393 000 were residents, while 403 000 commuted from the Flemish and the Walloon Regions. Conversely, 53 000 Bruxellois commuted to the Flemish Region and 23 000 to the Walloon Region.

EMPLOYMENT AND POPULATION IN THE BRUSSELS-CAPITAL REGION

A further distinctive feature of the BrusselsCapital Region is its highly diverse population. In 2022, 54% of the working-age population in Brussels was foreign-born, reflecting its appeal to both EU- (24%) and nonEU (30%) migrants. Not all the region’s talent participates in the labour market, posing a risk to its international competitiveness. The employment rate among the population aged 15 to 64 years was 60% in 2022, below the OECD average of 69% and significantly below comparable OECD metropolitan areas. For instance, employment rates were 82% in Amsterdam, 78% in Stockholm, and 76% in Berlin. The unemployment rate in 2022, at 11.6%, was also over double the OECD average of 5.1%. Youth unemployment at 31.7%, despite a decline in recent years, also remained significantly above the OECD average of 10.9%.

More than half of the BrusselsCapital Region's residents were born abroad, making it one of the most diverse regions in the OECD.

For the Brussels-Capital Region's employment rate to catch up with the OECD average employment rate, nearly 80 000 of the resident UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD working-age 2023 population would have to find work.

4

The world of work in the Brussels-Capital Region: A tale of two cities The Brussels-Capital Region is characterised by high shares of residents with high and low levels of education, contributing to pronounced differences in employment outcomes. In 2022, 54% of the Brussels-Capital Region’s population aged 25 to 64 years was highly educated and 58% worked in high-skilled occupations, a sharp increase from 49% in 2011. Eighty-four percent of

the highly educated population was employed, nearly twice the rate (44%) of residents with low levels of education. In addition, at 22%, the share of the population with low educational attainment in the Brussels-Capital Region is above the OECD average (20%) and much higher than comparable metropolitan areas such as Amsterdam (17%), Vienna (16%) and Berlin (13%).

Population characteristics and employment outcomes differ across large European cities Panel A: Population by educational attainment, 25-64, in percent Low

Medium

Panel B: Employment rate by education level, 25-64, in percent of the total population

High

Stockholm

High

Medium

Low

Amsterdam

Berlin

Stockholm

Wien

Paris

Amsterdam

Berlin

Paris

Vienna

BrusselsCapital Region

BrusselsCapital Region 0

100

Note: Data are from 2022. All regions refer to their respective TL2 region. Source: Eurostat Regional Database (Panel A) and OECD Regional Database (Panel B).

Despite the rise in labour demand in the Brussels-Capital Region, opportunities for less educated workers remain limited. Although the job vacancy rate, the share of total jobs in the local labour market that are vacant, increased significantly over the past decade (from 2.8% in 2012 to 4.0% in 2022) this largely reflects middle-skill and high-skill professions, with the logistics sector and administrative professions experiencing the largest rise in vacancies. A large share of jobs further requires highly technical skills, such as advanced digital skills, which were listed in 31% of online job

postings in 2022, on a par with global cities such as Berlin, Paris and New York City. The large share of workers formally undereducated for their job further points to skills imbalances in the region's labour market. Twenty-four percent of workers in the region do not hold a degree that corresponds to at least the modal educational attainment in their occupation, a share well above other OECD metropolitan areas such as Amsterdam (17%), Berlin (18%), and Vienna (19%).

Education level is a strong determinant of employment outcomes in the BrusselsCapital Region.

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

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Working in neighbouring regions: An opportunity for jobseekers with low levels of education? The number of vacancies received by VDAB in Flemish Brabant has increased over the past years Total vacancies

Vacancies with low education requirement

50000 45000 40000 35000 30000 25000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

Note: The annual number refers to vacancies received between January and December of a given year. Source: Arvastat (Vacancies received in a given period, all sectors, province Vlaams-Brabant.)

The relatively high demand for workers with lower levels of skills in the Flemish Region that surrounds the Brussels-Capital Region may present additional opportunities for jobseekers with lower skill levels and the economically inactive. An analysis of job vacancy data from Flemish Brabant, the Flemish province surrounding the Brussels-Capital Region, shows that a significant share of job vacancies in Flemish Brabant matches the profile of jobseekers in the region. For instance, in 2022, 17 700 job vacancies received by VDAB in Flemish Brabant only required a low level of education, corresponding to approximately 2 in 5

of all vacancies posted. Moreover, while Dutch language requirements in some sectors such as trade and sales can pose obstacles to crossregional mobility, these are much smaller in sectors such as transport and logistics. However, despite these opportunities, relatively low shares of workers with lower levels of education worked in the Brussel-Capital Region's surrounding regions. In 2020, 13 900 (3 800) less educated residents of the Brussels-Capital Region worked in the Flemish (Walloon) Region, compared to 14 500 (4 800) medium educated workers and 24 400 (15 100) highly educated workers.

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

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Language requirements in the Brussels-Capital Region: Are employers’ expectations realistic? The return on investment in language skills in both French and Dutch is high for jobseekers in the Brussels-Capital Region. The BrusselsCapital Region is officially bilingual and one of its distinct features is the importance of multiple language skills to find employment. The strong focus on skills in more than one national language is unique in the OECD. For instance, evidence suggests that the probability of finding employment is almost 50% higher for a fluent Dutch speaker compared to a jobseeker with only a basic knowledge of Dutch, even when socioeconomic differences between jobseekers and past unemployment history are accounted for. In 2019, 2 in 5 job vacancies in the region's Public Employment Service (PES) Actiris explicitly listed language requirements in French and Dutch.

While speaking multiple languages is important in the region, there may be potential to boost employment outcomes by reviewing some of the language requirements. The main reason for employers outside the public sector to require jobseekers to have language skills in both French and Dutch is the potential to serve both Frenchspeaking and Dutch-speaking customers in Belgium. While only the Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual, this argument is also relevant for employers in districts (arrondissements) that are in close geographical proximity to the language border. OECD evidence suggests that the language requirements in the Brussels-Capital Region are significantly higher than in Walloon arrondissements that lie on the language border. In 2021, 17% of online job vacancies in the Brussels-Capital Region, required some level of Dutch language skills, compared to only 5 %, 4%, 4% and 3% in neighbouring Waremme, Tournai Liege and Ath respectively.

The share of online job vacancies requiring Dutch language skills is relatively high in the Brussels-Capital Region 18% 16% 14% 12% 10% 8%

6% 4% 2% 0%

Brussels-Capital Region

Arr. Nivelles

Arr. Waremme

Arr. Tournai

Arr. Liège

Arr. Ath

Note: Arrondissements in Belgium correspond to the OECD’s TL-3 level. Source: OECD calculations based on Lightcast data. 2021.

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

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Not speaking Dutch or French also poses a major barrier to economic activity for non-eu-27-born migrants French and Dutch language skills play a crucial role in facilitating labour force participation among migrants from non-EU-27 countries, yet a significant portion lacks these language skills. In 2021, non-EU-27-born migrants aged between 25 and 64 years who spoke French or Dutch as their mother tongue were 7 percentage points, 10 percentage points, and 30 percentage points more likely to be economically active than those with advanced, intermediate, and beginner-level language skills, respectively. On the other hand, non-EU-27-born migrants with limited or no language skills in French or Dutch were 39 percentage points less likely to be part of the labour force. Among non-EU-27-born migrants, 23% report having only intermediate proficiency in at least one of the local languages, while 17% report having beginner-level or no language proficiency. Notably, among migrants registered with Actiris who obtained their highest qualification abroad, one in three possess only basic skills in either Dutch or French. This underscores the significance of language training as a crucial factor in labour market integration.

Many migrants are currently excluded from the labour market In the Brussels-Capital Region, education levels among working-age migrants from EU27 countries and outside the EU-27 were significantly different. In 2021, 60% of migrants aged 25 to 64 years who were born in EU-27 countries were highly educated, many working for the European institutions and the organisations supporting them.

Among non-EU-27 migrants in the same age category, only 35% were highly educated, while 39% had a low level of education. EU-27 migrants are also significantly more likely to migrate to the Brussels-Capital Region for work than non-EU-27 migrants (59% versus 22%). Most non-EU-27 migrants (56%) came to reunify with their families.

Employment rates of non-EU-27 born migrants are low in the Brussels-Capital Region Non-EU-27 migrants 100

EU-27 migrants

80 60 40 20 0

Brussels-Capital Region

Vienna

Berlin

Paris

Amsterdam

Stockholm

Note: Employment rate of population aged 15-64 years, 2022. All regions refer to their respective TL2 region. Source: Eurostat, Employment rates by sex, age, educational attainment level, country of birth and NUTS 2 regions [LFST_R_LFE2EMPRC].

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

8 Employment rates among migrants born outside EU-27 countries are low in the Brussels-Capital Region. In 2022, the employment rate of non-EU-27-born migrants aged 15 to 64 years stood at 52%, significantly below that of OECD metropolitan areas such as Vienna (60%), Berlin (64%) and Amsterdam (68%). By comparison, the employment rate among EU-27-born migrants was 74% in 2022, comparable to Vienna (75%) and the average in the European Union (75%). Worklessness is especially high for women born in non-EU-27 countries, among whom only 41% were employed.

Obstacles to employment participation persist for individuals with a migration background. Obstacles for migrants include the need to learn the local languages (French and Dutch), difficulties in getting foreign diplomas acknowledged and hiring discrimination. In Belgium, hiring discrimination has been shown to be a particularly persistent barrier to employment for non-EU-27 migrants. While self-employment can sometimes provide a path into the labour market for migrants, the regulatory burden to open a business in Belgium remains heavier than the EU median.

Female migrants from outside the European Union often arrive in the Brussels-Capital Region as family migrants with weak links to the local labour market One of the notable characteristics of non-EU-27 born migrants residing in the Brussels-Capital Region is that the majority (56% in 2021) arrived for family reasons rather than for employment, studies, or asylum, which are the other most common reasons for migration. These non-EU-27 migrants who came for family reasons often have lower levels of education (43%) and are predominantly female (63%). Non-EU-27-born migrants who arrived for family reasons constitute the group with the lowest labour market participation in the Brussels-Capital Region. According to OECD analysis, non-EU-27 born migrants aged between 25 and 64 years, who came for family reasons, were 35 percentage points less likely to be economically active than non-EU-27-born migrants who came for employment and had secured a job before migrating. Even after accounting for differences in education, gender, and age between these two groups of migrants, a significant gap of 18 percentage points persists.

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

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Simplify labour market policy governance Three institutions share the activities of a public employment service The organisation of Public Employment Services (PES) in the Brussels-Capital Region is unique among OECD countries. Actiris connects jobseekers to employers and manages a range of active labour market policies (e.g. employment incentives). Training for the unemployed, however, is the responsibility of two organisations, Bruxelles Formation and VDAB Brussel, that dispense training in French and Dutch respectively. The federal Belgian government is responsible for administering the unemployment insurance (UI) system. No other OECD country separates the responsibilities for supporting and training jobseekers in different institutions. In Québec (Canada) and the Basque Country (Spain), for example, job matching and training services are grouped together within the regional PES. The joint administration of active labour market programmes is important to link job search with skills development. Partner organisations (e.g.

the Danish arbejdsmarkedsuddannelser, the French GRETA) then provide training for jobseekers, without administrative and legal responsibility for their labour market integration. Indeed, in most OECD countries, training for the unemployed is contracted out to external providers outside PES. An integrated approach to employment policies and training for job seekers should be envisaged. Institutional agreements between Actiris and Bruxelles Formation or Actiris and VDAB Brussel tighten the relationship over certain labour market programmes. Agreements have yielded concrete projects such as the Cité des métiers or the Pôles Formation Emploi (PFE). However, collaboration falls short of the structural integration of services, methods and strategy. For jobseekers, the duplication of counsellors and administrative procedures complicates the job search and access to public services.

Actiris, CPAS and the social economy: align roles and reinvest services for the most vulnerable Municipal Centres d'action publique sociale (CPAS), responsible for the labour market integration of people receiving social assistance, are struggling with increasing caseloads. The number of people receiving minimum income (Revenu d’intégration sociale – RIS) has risen from 2.8% of the regional population in 2015 to 3.6% in 2022. This increase is putting pressure on the capacity of the CPAS social and labour market activation services to provide quality services to all individuals.

The region has options to support a greater number of people receiving social assistance to find work. One option would be for Actiris to be given responsibility for a larger proportion of individuals registered in CPAS. Another would be for the region to strengthen the labour market function of the CPAS.

In June 2023, more than 20% of unemployed jobseekers within Actiris were also registered with the CPAS.

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

10  Across the OECD, social and public employment services play distinct policy roles. For example, in Slovenia, social assistance centres pay social benefits, but all individuals receiving social assistance who are able to work are also registered with the PES for labour market and matching support. In other countries, municipal services have the responsibility and corresponding budgets to provide employment services to jobseekers on means-tested benefits, without the involvement of the PES. In the Netherlands, for example, the national government sets a funding formula that supports those receiving social assistance.

links between the Local Employment Agencies (ALE), which provide temporary jobs for jobseekers, and the full-time jobs available in social enterprises (entreprises sociales d’insertion). Small social economy organisations can also struggle as funding often requires strong organisational capacity to obtain project-based funds. The strategic coherence of organisations such as ALE and Missions locales may be hampered by a very high number of stakeholders participating in their governance boards in each municipality in which they operate. A first step towards reform could involve gathering social economy actors to identify complementarities and define a funding strategy together with the regional government. On the ground, it would be strategic to strengthen Maisons de l'emploi to advance the “one-stop shop” approach between Actiris, CPAS and the social economy.

At the local level, a large number of social economy organisations play an essential role in helping people in vulnerable situations find jobs though their work is hampered by governance issues. These organisations often provide services that are weakly linked to the actions of others. For example, there are few

Public employment services in the Brussels-Capital Region involve a higher number of actors than in other Belgian regions Active labour market policies (ALMPs) PES & administration Brussels-Capital Region (French Community)

Training

Other ALMPs

Unemployment benefits and early retirement

Bruxelles Formation Actiris

Actiris

Brussels-Capital Region (Flemish Community)

VDAB Brussel

Flemish Region

VDAB

Walloon Region

Le Forem

National Employment Office (ONEM)

Source: Author’s elaboration.

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

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Towards stronger and more equitable activation The Region has room to increase expectations of jobseekers in a tight labour market The monitoring process around job searches is less demanding in Brussels than in other OECD countries. According to the OECD strictness of activation requirements indicators, Belgium has less strict requirements around availability and the job search process compared to PES in most neighbouring countries. In contrast, Belgium imposes steeper sanctions than neighbouring countries for non-compliant jobseekers. The federal government defines availability, job search requirements and sanctions, while Belgian regions define the evaluation procedure for jobseekers. There are several possibilities for strengthening activation in the region based on practices in other OECD countries. Options include shortening the duration until the initial availability check (currently set at the earliest, at nine months) and shortening the time to subsequent availability checks (currently set at nine months following a negative assessment). A first availability check is carried out by Actiris after the ninth month of unemployment. In Germany, this check is carried out from the sixth month.

The region has options to strengthen activation outside the monitoring process. Actiris may lower caseloads for counsellors in order to secure more face-to-face time for jobseekers with greater distance to the labour market and more complex needs. Employment incentives, in which employers receive a temporary wage subsidy to hire a jobseeker, are not currently paired strongly with upskilling and training. Furthermore, the region could build a stronger evidence base through evaluating more labour market programmes.

In labour market policy, availability relates to the leeway unemployed people have in selecting among available job offers without risking their eligibility to unemployment benefits.

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

12 

Activation requirements in Belgium are less strict than the OECD average – OECD indicator of activation requirements (scale from 1 to 5) 5 4.5 4

4.11

3.5 3 2.5

2.86

2.92

France

Belgium

3.07

3.10

3.14

OECD

Netherlands

Germany

2 1.5

1 0.5 0

Luxembourg

Note: The index includes, among other factors, the type of job offers that jobseekers must accept, the job search effort requirements, the obligation to participate in professional integration programmes and the penalties for non-compliance with these requirements (1 = least strict to 5 = most strict). Source: OECD Strictness of activation requirements database.

The quality of jobs in the region requires closer measurement and evaluation Policies that place greater emphasis on the quality of employment would improve the sustainability of matches. In 2019, temporary employment reached 15.5% of all jobs in the region, a higher proportion of fixed-term employment than in the Flemish Region (9.9%) and the Walloon Region (11.8%). Part-time involuntary employment is also much higher than in other regions. According to the 2021 European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) of Belgium, working conditions have dropped across multiple dimensions since 2015. To best identify occupations and sectors facing a job quality challenge, the Region can accelerate implementation of a permanent observatory for job quality and explore its use for labour market policy. The “Go4Brussels 2030” strategy foresees the development of this type of tool within Actiris' statistical institute, View.brussels.

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

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Double the number of jobseekers entering and completing training Gather more granular information on skills needs Despite the many training opportunities in the region, fewer adults in the region take part in training than in other European cities. The proportion of adults aged between 25 and 64 who state that they have attended training in the last four weeks was only 14% in 2022, compared to 28% in Amsterdam, and 21% in Vienna and Oslo. Differences in training are also significant at the sectoral level in the region. Only 5% of those working in transportation and storage declared training in the last four weeks, compared to over 18% for manufacturing.

As a first step to further raise the impact of training, the regional government could organise an annual employer survey of skills. To gather a more granular idea of skills needs, some OECD countries have developed detailed surveys. Employer surveys on labour demand are already carried out by some actors in the Brussels-Capital Region, though this process may be broadened to all sectoral partners across the French and Dutch-language labour market.

Adults in Brussels participate less in training than those in other European cities share of adults aged 25 to 64 years old who participated in training over the past four weeks % 30

Amsterdam

Vienna

Oslo

Madrid

London

Paris

Source: Eurostat Regional Database [TRNG_LFSE_04].

UNLEASHING TALENT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM | POLICY HIGHLIGHTS © OECD 2023

Brussels-Capital Region

Berlin

14 

Strengthening the attractiveness of training Increasing the completion of training requires efforts to secure pathways from entry to graduation. According to a study carried out by the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, the Walloon Region, the Brussels-Capital Region and the COCOF, the drop-out rates for young people in dual learning in francophone Belgium can be as high as 50% and 60%. A significant proportion of Bruxelles Formation learners are also at risk of poverty, which prevents individuals from steadily attending class due to social obstacles. For example, for people in financial hardship, securing housing in the Brussels-Capital Region can be a challenge that impedes regular attendance of training. In Vienna, Austria, public authorities run a “Vocational Training Guarantee” with a permanent secretariat which brings together the federal and municipal services to meet the needs of young people through dual learning (i.e. pre-training, orientation, social needs).

Different vocational tracks can also be strengthened to attract more jobseekers. For example, efforts may be made through encouraging private sector employers to more fully recognise vocational training qualifications issued by Bruxelles Formation and VDAB Brussel. For the public sector, these qualifications should be fully recognised, which is not yet the case. Moreover, some vocational tracks, such as the region’s Social Promotion Education (Enseignement de promotion sociale – EPS), currently do not offer the same allowance or cost reimbursements as training provided by Bruxelles Formation.

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OECD recommendations Simplify the governance of the employment and vocational training system Create a unified pathway for job seekers within employment and vocational training services

✓

Adopt an integrated approach to employment and training services for jobseekers

✓ Evaluate greater use of contracting for labour market training

An integrated approach would involve even closer collaboration between Actiris, Bruxelles Formation and VDAB Brussel to create a single pathway for job seekers through the various services.

Evaluate the costs and benefits of contracting out more of the training offered to jobseekers. In the majority of OECD countries, the PES contract out training for jobseekers to public and private organisations.

Better align social economy schemes delivering labour market services for maximum impact

✓ Define the complementary roles of social economy organisations delivering labour market services

Municipalities (communes), the Region, social partners and social economy leadership could jointly define the policy role of Local Employment Agencies (ALE), work integration social enterprises (entreprises sociales d’insertion), Lokales Werkwinkels, Missions locales, Organismes d'Insertion Socio-professionnelle (OISP) and Socioprofessionele Inschakeling (SPI) in a strategy.

✓ Pool resources and establish a long-term regional funding strategy for the social economy

The Brussels-Capital Region could develop a funding strategy for the various social economy systems that balances structural and projectbased funding and enables organisations to provide quality services.

Strengthen employment services for the most vulnerable individuals and support Maisons de l’emploi

✓ Strengthen labour market services for people receiving minimum income (RIS)

Following the example of certain countries (e.g. Slovenia), Actiris could take responsibility for the labour market integration of a larger proportion of RIS recipients. Another solution would involve increasing the structural capacity of CPAS to run labour market services, as is the case in some countries where municipalities provide employment services (e.g. the Netherlands).

✓ Continue to develop Maisons de l’emploi

The Maisons de l'emploi could evolve towards a stronger "one-stop shop" model integrating employment and social services.

16 

Tackle long-term unemployment and economic inactivity more actively Support active job-seeking and geographical mobility

✓ Support the geographic mobility of jobseekers from the Brussels-Capital Region to the Flemish Region

Building on the 2021 agreement between the Brussels-Capital Region and the Flemish Region, transfer job offers from VDAB to Actiris. Identify and prioritise offers that are accessible by public transport that do not require Dutch language skills. Introduce commuting subsidies for all jobseekers who accept offers in the neighbouring Flemish Region. Subsidies are currently only available for long-term unemployed jobseekers.

✓ Speed up availability checks carried out by Actiris

The Brussels-Capital Region decides the method by which it assesses the activity of jobseekers. An initial availability check may be carried out earlier, while successive checks may be carried out more regularly.

Secure greater face-to-face time for labour market counselling of vulnerable jobseekers and review the design of employment incentives

✓ Devote more time to guidance for job seekers with the largest distance to the labour market

Increase the amount of time dedicated to jobseekers who struggle to find a job and have multiple labour market barriers. Expand the digital service offer and encourage more digitally literate jobseekers to use online services more extensively.

✓ Reform employment incentives

Establish stronger pathways for training when an employer hires through an employment incentive. Simplify the payment method of activa.brussels and other employment incentives.

✓ Evaluate employment policy measures in greater number and more frequently

Evaluation efforts could be extended to cover all active labour market policy programmes using quasi-experimental methods. Evaluations by View.brussels and IBSA could cover medium-term employment outcomes of programme participants in addition to short-term outcomes.

Increase policy attention on job quality in active labour market programmes

✓ Monitor the quality of jobs more closely

Speed up the implementation of the permanent job quality observatory in View.brussels to identify the sectors in which employment quality of working conditions may be a challenge. A regional survey of the quality of employment and work would enhance the accuracy of the data available.

 17

Support the labour market integration of migrants and implement the “15 pledges to combat labour market discrimination and promote diversity” Introduce measures tailored to the needs of immigrant jobseekers ✓ Encourage recognition of qualifications acquired abroad

Create fast-track recognition procedures for occupations facing shortages in origin countries where equivalent training has been assessed. In Sweden, tripartite negotiations have resulted in a "fast track" approach for 40 occupations. France and the Canadian province of Québec have signed an agreement automating the recognition of qualifications, opening the way to more than 80 professions.

✓ Offer vocation-specific language training

Introduce vocational language courses tailored to specific high-need occupations, language courses focused on general workplace scenarios or job interviews, on-the-job language sessions in partnership with specific employers and language training in connection with ALMPs.

✓ Ensure that civic integration courses are tailored to the realities of immigrant women from outside the EU

Ensure that mandatory civic integration courses include training on gender equality and employment opportunities for women. Parts of the integration course could be taught by women for women and include discussions on women’s rights and health care.

✓ Combine labour market training with access to childcare

Expand existing programmes such as Actiris’ Maison d’Enfants to ensure childcare is available while parents participate in training or education.

Expand labour market inclusion initiatives for people with a migration background ✓ Commit to diversity goals in the public sector

Develop a diversity recruitment strategy for the public sector. To eliminate employment barriers for foreign-born jobseekers who face challenges in having their foreign-acquired formal education recognised in Belgium, skills assessments could be used as an alternative to formal education requirements.

✓ Adopt a more proactive, sector-based approach to combating discrimination in the labour market

Continue to mobilise Actiris' Diversity Plans while deepening dialogue with sectors where diversity could be improved.

18 

Increase the number of people entering training and raise placement impact of training Collect better information about the labour market and support employers in publishing job vacancies ✓ Conduct an in-depth survey on local employer skills needs

A local employer survey could gather up-to-date information on in-demand skills.

✓ Collaborate closely with employers to determine if the language skills listed in a job vacancy match actual workplace needs

Actiris could establish an automated process that evaluates the language requirements of received job offers and suggest revisions to employers if appropriate.

Improve the attractiveness of vocational training and education leading to qualifications ✓ Encourage employers to recognise vocational training qualifications

Encourage employer advisers from Actiris, Bruxelles Formation and VDAB Brussel to provide more information on the skills provided by vocational training qualifications to recruiters.

✓ Introduce a training allowance for learners in vocational education

Harmonise upwards the allowances (EUR 2 per hour) and reimbursements offered by the various training systems in the region, particularly between Enseignement de promotion sociale (EPS) and vocational training.

Increase the role and visibility of dual learning ✓ Develop a stronger institutional relationship between Actiris and the dual learning system

Create an institutional agreement between Actiris and the SFPME/EFP to develop a strategy for recruiting apprentices among jobseekers.

✓ Introduce a “vocational training guarantee” to support young people in dual learning

Develop pre-training for young people who do not have the required skills before they start dual learning. Provide mentoring support to young people in dual learning schemes.

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