Belgian employers both resilient and cautious in their hiring forecasts for Q2 2025

According to the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey, 50% of employers in Belgium plan to maintain their workforce over the next three months, while 36% plan to hire. In a climate of uncertainty, the Net Employment Outlook for Q2 drops by 4 points to +24%.

According to the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey released today, Belgian employers anticipate positive hiring activity in the second quarter of 2025. Among the 524 employers surveyed in January by ManpowerGroup, 36% expect to increase their workforce by the end of June 2025, while 12% plan to reduce it. Meanwhile, 50% of employers foresee no changes.

After seasonal adjustments, the Net Employment Outlook (NEO) – the difference between the percentage of employers planning to hire and those planning to downsize – stands at +24%. This marks a 4-point decrease from the previous quarter but a slight 2-point increase compared to Q2 2024. With this result, Belgium stands 4 points above the average for the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) (+20%) and 1 point below the global average (+25%).

The survey reveals that companies planning to hire are primarily doing so to support expansion (40%) or to backfill positions opened due to employees leaving (30%). On the other hand, those considering workforce reductions cite economic challenges impacting staffing (28%), workforce adjustments to demand (26%), and restructuring or reorganization (25%) as key reasons.

 “The results of our Q2 2025 survey show that Belgian employers are demonstrating both resilience and caution in a complex and uncertain economic environment. They are focusing on workforce stability and tight cost management,” explains Sébastien Delfosse, Managing Director of ManpowerGroup BeLux. “The job market remains subdued, and employers who are hiring are doing so in a highly targeted manner, aligned with their expansion and transformation needs, as well as shifts in market demand.”

Declining Hiring Activity Across All Three Regions

Employers report positive hiring intentions across all three regions of the country: +28% in Flanders, +22% in Wallonia, and +18% in Brussels.

However, forecasts have declined in all three regions, particularly in Brussels, where the Net Employment Outlook has dropped by 9 points quarter-over-quarter and by 14 points year-over-year, reaching its lowest level in four years.

“Employment remains one of the biggest challenges in the Brussels region, where, according to our latest Talent Shortage Survey, 76% of employers in the region  – 72% at Belgian level – struggle to fill vacancies despite persistently high unemployment. The Brussels region urgently needs a government, as recently emphasized by Voka and Beci,” Delfosse adds.

Mixed Employment Outlook Across Sectors

Employers in all nine industry sectors surveyed in Belgium expect to increase their workforce by the end of June 2025. As in the previous quarter, contrasting trends are observed:

• Strong hiring optimism in Financial & Real Estate Services (+41%), Communication Services (+41%), and IT (+35%).
• Weaker forecasts in Healthcare/Life Sciences (+19%), Public Services/Education/Other (+13%), and Energy (+9%).

Although hiring activity in the Manufacturing & Construction sector (+22%) is up by 6 points compared to the previous quarter, it remains moderate. Meanwhile, hiring intentions are encouraging in Transport & Logistics (+28%) and Consumer Goods/Services/Hospitality/Retail (+31%).

Looking at company size, medium-sized businesses (50-249 employees) report the most optimistic hiring intentions (+31%).

Positive Employment Prospects in 40 of 41 Countries Surveyed Globally

ManpowerGroup’s survey of more than 40,000 employers worldwide indicates positive employment prospects in 40 out of 41 countries, with Argentina being the only exception (0%). The global Net Employment Outlook stands at +25%, maintaining stability for the third consecutive quarter. Employers in India (+43%) and the United States (+34%) are the most optimistic.

The outlook remains less favorable in the EMEA region, where the Net Employment Outlook reaches +20%, up 1 point from the previous quarter and 4 points from the same period last year. Hiring intentions have improved in 16 out of 23 countries year-over-year.

With a Net Employment Outlook of +24%, Belgium ranks in the top half of the surveyed countries in Europe, behind the United Kingdom (+31%), the Netherlands (+27%), Norway, Switzerland (+26%), and Ireland (+25%), but ahead of Germany (+22%), France (+20%), Italy (+18%), Poland (+17%), Spain (+15%), Austria (+12%), Greece (+7%), and Romania (+6%).

The results of the next ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey will be released on 10 June 2025 (Quarter 3 2025).

(1) Throughout this report, we use the term “Net Employment Outlook.” This figure is derived by taking the percentage of employers anticipating an increase in hiring activity and subtracting from this the percentage of employers expecting to see a decrease in employment at their location in the next quarter. The result of this calculation is the Net Employment Outlook. The analysis is based on seasonnally adjusted data.

Report : ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey Q2 2025

Presentation of the Survey

The ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey for the second quarter  of 2025 was conducted in January 2025 by interviewing a representative sample of employers from 40,000 private companies and public organizations in 41 countries and territories around the world (including 524 in Belgium). The aim of the survey is to measure employers’ intentions to increase or decrease the number of employees in their workforce during the next quarter. All survey participants were asked the same question: “How do you anticipate total employment at your location to change in the three months to the end of June 2025 as compared to the current quarter?” It is the only forward-looking survey of its kind, unparalleled in its size, scope, longevity and area of focus. The Survey has been running for 60 years and is one of the most trusted surveys of employment activity in the world. It is considered a highly respected economic indicator.