East Flanders (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – A task force is being established in East Flanders to resolve employment challenges resulting from company shutdowns, with more than 10,000 open positions in the area. By working together, UNIZO East Flanders joins forces with VDAB and Syntra Midden Flanders to help job seekers connect with their next employment destinations.
East Flanders created a task force that plans to address labour market challenges triggered by Belgan’s SVK and Ontex’s company closures. The initiative unites efforts from UNIZO East Flanders with VDAB and Syntra Midden Flanders to help mitigate job losses while directing employees toward suitable employment prospects. The task force stresses two essential factors: employers embracing different perspectives and sustained training programs that prepare employees for future work.
The current employment situation shows a double trend in the provincial labour market, where vacancies exceed 10,000, but vacancy figures decline while recruitment agencies record reduced vacancies. At the same time, employment agencies experience increased temporary placement demands.
How Is East Flanders addressing labour market challenges through a task force?
A task force was established following significant East Flanders corporate restructuring to strengthen the local labour market. The job transition initiative combines resources from UNIZO East Flanders with VDAB and Syntra Midden Flanders to stabilise employment markets and reorient workers into alternative professional routes. According to UNIZO, employers need to welcome candidates whose profiles differ from traditional backgrounds, and Syntra supports extensive training to build worker competencies for evolving job markets. VDAB encourages companies to submit their open positions and develops efficient procedures for candidates to find employment opportunities.
The task force discovered 10,000 plus local job openings that can strengthen the regional job market. Annually reported vacancies have decreased by 5.4%, according to VDAB statistics, yet recruitment agency vacancies dropped more steeply at 7% while temporary assignment vacancies grew by 4.8%. The vacancy trend differs between regions because Sint-Niklaas experienced no change, but Oudenaarde lost 17.7% of its vacancies because of the Belgian manufacturer’s bankruptcy. The town of Aalst witnessed a 15.2% job market reduction because Tupperware shut down its jar production factory.
