On June 21, 2023, it was reported that the number of school leavers in Flanders facing unemployment after completing their education reached the lowest level in over ten years.

The Brussels Times attributes this positive trend to an expanding labor market that is generating more opportunities for young individuals.

Out of the 70,195 students who graduated in 2021, only 3,869 individuals (5.5 percent) were registered as jobseekers with the Flemish employment service VDAB by June 30, 2022. This figure marks a significant decline from the nearly 10 percent recorded at the onset of the pandemic.

VDAB stated, "As the labor market boomed, the number of jobseekers without employment continued to decrease. By June, this number had reached a record low, creating a highly competitive labor market that presented challenges for employers while offering numerous prospects for young school leavers seeking employment."

It is worth noting that the availability of opportunities for school leavers greatly depends on their educational qualifications, as emphasized by VDAB. They stated, "The higher the level of education, the greater the job opportunities and prospects, resulting in a reduced likelihood of unemployment one year after graduating."

Among school leavers without a secondary education degree, 20 percent remained jobless at the end of June, compared to 6.3 percent among those with a diploma. Only 3 percent of individuals with a higher vocational diploma or HBO5, a program that combines on-the-job learning with theoretical instruction, experienced unemployment after one year.

Additionally, for those enrolled in the practical BSO and TSO programs in secondary schools, which have incorporated this dual training model since its official introduction in 2019, the unemployment rate stood at just 4.2 percent after one year. Photo by Torsade de Pointes, Wikimedia commons.