The number of hours worked by temporary agency workers in Belgium recorded a decrease of 6.58% in September 2023 when compared to the same period a year ago, according to calendar-basis adjusted data from Federgon, the Belgian federation of staffing agencies.

The 6.58% decrease was attributed to a year-on-year decrease in activity of 6.82% in the blue-collar segment, and a decrease of 6.26% in the white-collar segment.

Among regions, Flanders reported an annual decline of 8.28% in September. Broken down, by segment, the white-collar segment saw an annual decrease of 8.90% while the blue-collar segment fell by 7.87%.

The Wallonia region reported a fall of 4.16%. The white-collar segment saw a slight annual decrease of 0.43% and the blue-collar segment was down 6.39%.

Meanwhile, Brussels recorded a decrease of 1.55% over the year. The white-collar segment saw a fall of 4.39% but the blue-collar segment reported an increase of 5.83%.

In September 2023, the number of hours of temporary work performed increased by 1.12% compared to the previous month (based on figures adjusted for seasonal and calendar influences).

The monthly increase was driven by an increase in the number of hours worked of 1.86% in the blue-collar segment and an increase of 0.26% in the white-collar segment.

The Flanders region reported a monthly increase of 0.69%. The white-collar segment saw a fall of 0.12% but the blue-collar segment saw an increase of 1.31%.

Wallonia recorded an increase of 2.81% over the month boosted by white-collar growth of 2.13% and an increase of 3.62% in the blue-collar segment.

Brussels saw a monthly increase of 0.63% with growth fuelled by an increase in both white-collar (0.75%) and blue-collar (2.60%).  

Paul Verschueren, director research & economic affairs, said, “After a fairly solid decline in the month of August, the temporary agency worker activity shows a slight improvement in September. However, agency work stays well below the activity level of last year, reflecting persistent economic weaknesses.”