HR services in Belgium helped boost GDP growth in Belgium for the first quarter of 2017 by 1.6% when compared to the previous year according to data from Federgon, the Belgian federation of staffing agencies.

The data from Federgon also showed that when compared to the previous quarter, GDP was up 0.6% in Q1 2017.

The growth was boosted by an increase in HR services activity in the country. Temporary employment was up by 4.8% in Q1 when compared to the previous year. This growth included traditional agency work and student work.

Meanwhile, Recruitment, Search and selection was up 17% on the year. When compared to the previous year,  the education sector was up 5.2% and private securities was also up 4.4%. The data also showed a decline in outplacement (-12.2%) and the interim management market (-3.3%).