While the overall well-being of French-speaking people in Wallonia and Brussels has improved slightly, inequalities within this group are worsening – with under-40s struggling in particular, a recent barometer found.
After a long period of decline, the living conditions of French-speaking Belgians have improved slightly, as was shown in recent Confidence and Well-being barometers carried out by health insurance company Solaris. Yet although the overall results mark a general progression, for under-40s living conditions have fallen by 1.7%, symptomatic of a general uneasiness felt by the age group.
To gauge well-being, participants answered questions about their physical and mental health, their working conditions, their ability to save, their views on national institutions, and their relationships with those close to them.
"Nearly four in 10 under-40s can be considered depressed and more than half in a state of high stress," the report, published on Wednesday, read. It noted that almost three in ten rate their life negatively. Starker still: almost two-thirds are pessimistic about the future of society.
As well as this despondency about the evolution of wider communities, younger people in the French-speaking community feel a lack of support on a regional and local level. In the world of work, only 43% feel that their work is a source of well-being, the rest feeling overwhelmed by the amount of work expected of them.
Growing divisions
The barometer also highlighted persisting inequalities, some of which are growing. The average level of well-being is still lower for women (49.4%) than for men (55.2%). Aside from under-40s, the living conditions deteriorated significantly for single-parent families over seven years, and those with disabilities and the unemployed are also worse off.
Furthermore, the survey again illuminated the impact that a drop in financial security has on mental health and even physical ailments.
One-third of respondents stated that they eat poorly for financial reasons; over four in ten don't do sport for the same reasons. This situation will likely grow more severe as a result of the energy and cost of living crisis. With just 36.3% of people able to put money aside (down from 44.4%), these difficulties will become more widespread.
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In view of the results, Solidaris sounded the alarm and makes a few recommendations that it believes are "vital for a growing part of the population." This includes automating the BIM status (beneficiary of the increased intervention), putting an end to the status of cohabitant and, more generally, raising the minimum social benefits.
"We also need to start a political debate about universal social security that protects everyone and also integrates new risks, especially environmental risks," Secretary General of Solidaris, Jean-Pascal Labille, noted.
