With nearly 95,000 jobseekers, Brussels is still grappling with massive unemployment. Beyond the statistics, the entire economy is struggling. For Beci, this is not just a social issue, it directly concerns businesses.
Unemployment in Brussels is nothing new. Figures fluctuate, reforms pile up, yet the reality remains: finding a job is difficult for many, and finding staff is just as difficult for companies. Behind the numbers lie delayed projects, stalled investments, and slowed-down construction sites. Beci reminds us: unemployment is not only a social indicator, it is a drag on the capital’s economic vitality.
A very Brussels paradox
In August 2025, Actiris recorded 94,821 jobseekers a 15.1% unemployment rate, slightly down from last year (-0.8%). A decrease that may sound reassuring, but it hides two worrying trends: the rise in long-term unemployment and the growing number of people depending on public assistance (CPAS). In other words, a part of Brussels’ population is drifting further away from the labour market.
This gap hits businesses head-on. In construction, hospitality, logistics, or healthcare, shortages of qualified workers are slowing activity. The consequences are clear: unfilled vacancies, longer recruitment times, and weakened competitiveness. The paradox is striking: thousands of available candidates, but too few with the right skills. In short, massive unemployment on one side, companies starved for talent on the other.
Breaking down silos: public and private must work together
“Businesses can help improve the labour market, but only if they’re given the tools to do so,” stresses Thierry Devillez, Director Wallonia-Brussels at Federgon, the federation of private HR service providers. Without stronger cooperation between public and private actors, the system will remain unbalanced. For him, three priorities stand out.
First, smoother exchanges between Actiris and private agencies (temp work, recruitment, outplacement). Too many job offers get lost in administrative red tape. Clearer bridges would allow employers faster access to relevant candidates and give jobseekers more opportunities.
Second, the development of short, targeted, and flexible training programs, like those run by Travi, the training body for the temporary work sector. Job days, practical modules, direct support: “We test, evaluate, adjust, and start a new cycle,” explains Federgon. What works can then be scaled up. A pragmatic method that prioritises quality over an endless multiplication of schemes.
Finally, simplify the institutional landscape. Brussels is overflowing with operators and agencies to the point of being unreadable. For businesses, it’s a source of confusion and delays. “The reform must create one-stop shops, not extra layers,” insists Devillez.
Businesses on the front line
From an entrepreneurial perspective, the consequences of Brussels’ unemployment are felt at several levels. Recruitment is becoming increasingly time-consuming. Job ads pile up, applications are missing or unsuitable, and when a candidate is finally hired, companies still need to invest in basic training. Languages, digital tools, soft skills, businesses are filling gaps themselves, at significant financial and productivity costs.
Some companies choose to adapt. They bet on atypical profiles, value experience gained outside traditional paths, multiply sector partnerships, or host more trainees and apprentices. Others invest in mentoring schemes. In short, they innovate to keep things moving. But this creativity has limits: without institutional recognition and streamlined processes, it risks remaining marginal.
In short
The actors are already there: Actiris, Bruxelles Formation, private agencies, sector centres, insertion operators. Each has expertise, but they need to work together, not side by side. If Brussels succeeds in building such coherence, unemployment could finally decline—not just as an isolated statistic, but as part of a collective dynamic.
Unemployment in Brussels won’t disappear overnight. But it doesn’t have to remain an inevitability if everyone accepts their share of responsibility. Beci is convinced: businesses are not peripheral to this issue, they are at its core.
Reducing unemployment also means giving the Brussels economy room to breathe, invest, and attract. And ultimately, it means offering the capital a smoother, more promising future for everyone.
For Brussels to regain economic momentum, the city needs a functioning regional government. For now, political deadlock is slowing down both jobs and businesses: Beci and sector federations are sounding the alarm. Read more here.