The restructurings are now happening very quickly, or does it just seem that way?

1. Is there a wave of restructuring currently taking place?

That seems to be the case, judging by the rapid succession of announcements. Almost every day a company reports that it plans to cut jobs. On Wednesday, Decathlon announced that 132 people will become redundant at the distribution center in Willebroek. The day before, dairy company Milcobel put 130 jobs at risk. Last week there were announcements from Beaulieu (95 jobs) and steel company Icopal (51 jobs). Furthermore, 600 jobs are at risk at service voucher company ACC. In addition, there is of course the bankruptcy of bus builder Van Hool, which employed 2,500 people. Earlier this year there were restructurings and closures at chocolate manufacturer Barry Callebaut, paper manufacturer Sappi, carpet manufacturers Balta and McThree, chemical company 3M, packaging company Avery Dennison and supermarket chain Match-Profi. And then there were also the closures of the Fun, Body Shop and Esprit store chains. All in all, this concerns thousands of jobs at risk.

2. Are those exceptional numbers?

Statistics kept by the federal government show that 2,551 jobs were threatened in the first quarter because a collective dismissal was requested. That figure was higher than the quarterly average of last year, which involved 1,835 jobs. In 2022 that was only half. The number of jobs that are at risk due to collective redundancies is therefore on the rise. Statistics from the financial information agency Graydon also show that in the first quarter of this year, around two thousand jobs were threatened by bankruptcies every month. That figure is also higher than last year. Moreover, it will be increased by the bankruptcy of Van Hool.

3. How bad is that?

Job losses are inevitable in a healthy economy. Figures from the Dynam research group show that between 150,000 and 200,000 jobs are lost in Belgium every year as companies adapt, downsize or discontinue their activities. As long as the number of newly created jobs is higher, the net size of the labor market will increase. And that has been the case in Belgium for years.

4. Is there a common thread in the announcements?

What is striking is that it is mainly industrial companies that are restructuring or going bankrupt. In that sense, Decathlon is an outsider: this is a distribution center, i.e. a service company. It is no secret that the industry has been in a tough spot lately. High energy costs, rising interest rates and the weak European economy are hampering the factories. At the same time, things are going well in the services sector. There are too few people there. G4S is looking for 75 security officers for the airport, De Lijn is looking for dozens of bus drivers and there are four thousand vacancies in healthcare.

5. Should we fear more layoffs?

“There are dark clouds hanging over our industry, even though there are no mass layoffs,” Yves Verschueren, the CEO of the chemical and pharmaceutical federation Essenscia, said last week. At the same time, he did not rule out restructuring. There is a feeling that the labor market is less robust than before. This became apparent on Monday, when the National Bank announced the current state of consumer confidence. Belgian consumers are optimistic about the economy, their own finances and their savings capacity, but much more pessimistic about the labor market. This has to do with the succession of negative messages, the bank suspects.

6. How justified is that pessimism?

The labor market remains strong. Last year, a net of 40,000 jobs were added in Belgium. That’s 769 per week. That number was somewhat lower than in previous years. At the same time, unemployment remained historically low. In Flanders, only 3.5 percent of the working population is without work. The share of unfilled jobs in Belgium is 4.4 percent, the highest percentage in Europe. At the same time, tensions in the labor market are easing somewhat. Two years ago, 5 percent of jobs were vacant. Compared to a year before, 10 percent more job seekers are registered with the VDAB, compared to 13.5 percent fewer vacancies. Although methodological changes also play a role.

7. Do the dismissed people easily find other work?

Of the 569 employees who lost their jobs due to the closure of the Sappi paper factory in Limburg, 210 found a new job four months later. Some went to work at other industrial companies. But there were also career switches to education, residential care centers or car inspection, VDAB Limburg announced on Monday. This illustrates the challenge of today’s labor market: jobs are most threatened in industry, but shortages are mainly in the service sector.