While Belgium aims more than ever to achieve an employment rate of 80% by 2030, the regions and the federal government are still struggling to find the miracle recipe to achieve this. A new package of measures has already been set at the last budgetary conclave. But it may be insufficient to manage to put 70,000 people to work per year during the nine years.

Accompanied by King Philippe, the four Employment Ministers (Pierre-Yves Dermagne, Bernard Clerfayt, Hilde Crevits and Christie Morreale), as well as representatives of the social partners and administrations therefore flew to Denmark on Monday. for a study visit. In the delegation, we find figures like Pieter Timmermans, the managing director of the FEB, the boss of the Voka Hans Maertens, or even Marie-Christine Van Bockestal, the director of Forem. They hope to find certain avenues there, particularly in terms of activating the unemployed and training.

The Danish model – based on what is called the “golden triangle” formed of flexibility, security, and an active labor market policy, is indeed renowned for its effectiveness. For example, the employment rate is 77.8%, compared to 70% for us.. Some lessons may be good to take there.

Among the planned visits, the delegation will meet representatives of the Danish social partners. She will also visit the company Novo Nordisk, as well as the Danish agency which deals with the training of job seekers. and workers.

The training aspects of job seekers are of particular interest to the Regions. A Brussels, the office of the Minister of Employment Bernard Clerfayt underlines the difficulties of matching job seekers with the labor market. “70% of people supported by Actiris have few skills, there is a real challenge for the Region in terms of training, employment and continuing education. However, in Denmark, their activation policy is more sustained than ours, and their model is also strongly based on work-study training.. “A form of education that remains poor with us, despite other study visits already carried out in Germany or Switzerland a few years ago …

On the Walloon side, the minister in charge of the file, Christie Morreale, will be particularly attentive to the policy of activating job seekers, very effective in Denmark. “After completing the reform of Forem last week, we are here looking for new inspiring approaches that we could try to come to us”, specifies the office of the Walloon minister.

The Danish social consultation model also intrigued the Belgian delegation. Both Christie Morreale and her federal counterpart Pierre-Yves Dermagne will take a close look at how the Danish model works, based on very limited government interventionism. The country’s legislation on employment and wages is indeed very poor, with Denmark primarily leaving the hand to consultation in sectors and companies.

At Pierre-Yves Dermagne, on emphasizes nevertheless social coherence which seems to be slowly undermined by the flexicurity system. During the covid crisis, the government, for the first time in the country’s history, took more control of the social front, opening wide the floodgates of aid to businesses and workers (via the payment substantial wage compensation for workers who are on shutdown). A recipe that has enabled Denmark to avoid seeing its unemployment rate explode.