The employment rate among people aged between 20- to 64-year-old in Flanders rose to 77.3% in 2025. This is a slight increase on the 76.9% of people in our region that were in employment at the end of 2024. The figures that come from the Flemish statistic office Statistiek Vlaanderen (Statistics Flanders) show that the employment rate has been rising steadily since 1999, when it stood at 67.9%.
The figures show significant differences between men and women and between the various age groups. At the end of 2025 80.4% of men and 74.3% of women living in Flanders that are aged between 20 and 64 were in employment. Older people of working age remain considerably less active in the labour market. The employment rate for the 55- to 64-year-olds was 65.6%.
Meanwhile, the rate among people with low levels of academic attainment 53%. This rises to 77.6% among those with mid-level qualifications and 90% among those with tertiary level education qualifications.
Cohabiting partners with children had the highest employment rate at 87.9%, while those still living with their parents recorded the lowest employment rate at 56.5%.
There are also differences in the employment between groups according to their origine. The employment rate among people born outside the EU was 65.6%, while it was 79% among those born in Belgium and 76.6% among those born in another EU member state.
Employment rate higher than average for Belgium as a whole
The employment rate in Flanders is considerably higher than it is in Wallonia and the Brussels-Capital Region. In Wallonia the employment rate stood at 67.9% at the end of 2025, while in Brussels the employment rate was 63.9%.