While the employment rate is increasing in general across the country, the employment rate for people with disabilities is decreasing in the private sector, HR specialist Acerta stated on Friday.
Only 0.23% of private sector workers have disabilities, a 6% decrease from last year, according to Acerta, which analysed data from 407,000 employees across over 29,300 employers.
In 2023, 0.25% of private-sector employees had disabilities, but this has now dropped to 0.23%. Brussels has the highest rate of workers with disabilities at 0.36%, marking a 2.2% increase from the previous year.
"The extensive public transport network in Brussels potentially contributes to the accessibility of employers in the region, which can be a significant factor for people with disabilities," says Acerta's legal expert, Laura Couchard.
Flanders has the lowest proportion, with only 0.19% of workers having disabilities. Wallonia has seen the largest decrease over the past year, dropping from 0.38% to 0.31%, an 18.4% decline.
"The De Wever government aims for 80% of working-age Belgians to be employed by 2029. However, this goal has not yet been reached. According to the latest figures from the statistical agency Statbel, the employment rate in our country stands at 72.8%. More efforts are needed in certain groups, especially among people with disabilities," Acerta states.
