Evolutie van vrouwen op de arbeidsmarkt
Welke gemeenten in België hebben de grootste gelijkheid tussen mannen en vrouwen?
Historisch gezien is de werkgelegenheidsgraad[1] hoger bij mannen dan bij vrouwen. Dat verschil is grotendeels het gevolg van sociaaldemografische, economische en culturele factoren. In de loop der jaren is de kloof echter kleiner geworden. Statbel, het Belgische statistiekbureau, maakt gebruik van de recente publicatie van de gegevens van de Census 2021 om een stand van zaken op te maken van deze ontwikkelingen en van het soort jobs die door mannen en vrouwen worden uitgevoerd.
Uit de censusdata voor de bevolking tussen 20 en 64 jaar blijkt dat het verschil in de werkgelegenheidsgraad tussen mannen en vrouwen van 10,3 procentpunten in 2011 naar 6,2 procentpunten in 2021 gedaald is. Terwijl de werkgelegenheidsgraad van vrouwen in 2021 68,6% bedroeg, bedroeg die van mannen 74,7%.
Het verschil tussen mannen en vrouwen op de arbeidsmarkt hangt eveneens af van hun woonplaats. Zo is de kloof in werkgelegenheidsgraad het hoogst in het Brusselse Hoofdstedelijk Gewest: 64,2% voor mannen en 55,7% voor vrouwen.
Bierbeek is de enige gemeente waarbij de werkgelegenheidsgraad hoger is bij vrouwen dan bij mannen
Behalve in de gemeente Bierbeek, is de werkgelegenheidsgraad bij mannen overal hoger dan bij vrouwen. De gemeenten met de hoogste werkgelegenheidsgraden bij vrouwen zijn vooral te vinden in West-Vlaanderen en in de gemeenten dicht bij Brussel. De geografische verdeling van de hoogste werkgelegenheidsgraden bij mannen is meer verspreid en strekt zich uit naar het noorden van het land en naar het oosten, aan de grenzen met Nederland en Duitsland.
Andere gemeenten hebben vergelijkbare werkgelegenheidsgraden per geslacht
Voor sommige gemeenten, verspreid over het hele grondgebied, wordt de gelijkheid tussen mannen en vrouwen in termen van werkgelegenheidscijfers (bijna) gerespecteerd, met een kleine kloof tussen de seksen, ongeacht het percentage. Dat is het geval voor de gemeenten Beernem met een werkgelegenheidsgraad van 80,8% voor mannen en 80,7% voor vrouwen, Doornik met respectievelijk 65,5% en 65,4%, Verlaine met respectievelijk 79,5% en 78,9%, Hastière met respectievelijk 55,8% en 55,1% en Lierneux met respectievelijk 72% en 71%.
Grotere verschillen in sommige gemeenten
Daartegenover zijn er verschillende gemeenten, voornamelijk in het Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest en Wallonië, met een vrij groot verschil in werkgelegenheidsgraad tussen mannen en vrouwen. De kloof is het grootst in Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, waar de werkgelegenheidsgraad van mannen (59,6%) 15,8 procentpunten hoger ligt dan die van vrouwen (43,8%). Het verschil in werkgelegenheidsgraad tussen mannen en vrouwen is ook aanzienlijk in de gemeenten Anderlecht, met een werkgelegenheidsgraad van 63,1% voor mannen en 49,8% voor vrouwen, Koekelberg met een werkgelegenheidsgraad van respectievelijk 67,2% en 54,4%, Farciennes met respectievelijk 57,8% en 42,5%, en Sint-Niklaas met respectievelijk 66% en 52,7%.
Vrouwen zijn vaker loontrekkende
Er zijn nog andere verschillen tussen mannen en vrouwen, en dan vooral wat hun beroepssituatie betreft. Een groter deel van de vrouwen is loontrekkende ten opzichte van mannen, die vaker zelfstandige zijn. Dat verschil is in 2021 toegenomen ten opzichte van 2011 en kan worden verklaard door de proportioneel grotere toename van het aantal mannelijke zelfstandigen.
In de hoofdstad is het verschil groter voor zelfstandigen, die voornamelijk mannen zijn, met een kloof van 10,8 procentpunten met vrouwen, terwijl voor het land als geheel deze kloof slechts 5,2 procentpunten bedraagt in 2021.
Mannen even vaak bediende als arbeider
Verder blijkt dat 52,1% van de werkende vrouwen bediende zijn, 18,1% arbeider en 14% ambtenaar, terwijl 33,6% van de mannen bediende zijn, 32,2% arbeider en 10,2% ambtenaar. Voor de eerste twee categorieën is de kloof tussen mannen en vrouwen niettemin lichtjes verkleind ten opzichte van 2011, van 20,5 procentpunten naar 18,5 voor bedienden en van 14,4 procentpunten naar 14,1 voor arbeiders. Daarentegen, is het verschil voor vrouwelijke ambtenaren groter, van 1,7 punten naar 3,8 punten.
Bij de loontrekkenden is de kloof groter in het Waals Gewest, waar vrouwen vaker bediende en mannen vaker arbeider zijn.
De verdeling tussen mannen en vrouwen volgens beroepsstatuut is gelijkmatiger in de gemeente Martelange, die de enige gemeente in België is met een hoger aandeel werkzame mannen die loontrekkende zijn dan werkzame vrouwen. In dezelfde gemeente is het aandeel zelfstandige vrouwen hoger dan dat van mannen. Dat is ook het geval in de gemeenten Habay, Aubange en De Haan. De gemeenten Anderlecht en Koekelberg vertonen daarentegen grotere verschillen in de verdeling naar beroepsstatuut tussen mannen en vrouwen.
Mannen werken vaker buiten hun provincie
Hoewel de verdeling tussen vrouwen en mannen naar werkplaats op provinciaal niveau vrij gelijkmatig en stabiel doorheen de tijd is, kan er een onderscheid worden waargenomen op het gebied van de verplaatsingen volgens de provincie waar men werkt. Zo verlaten mannen vaker hun provincie van woonplaats om te gaan werken. Terwijl 77,4% van de vrouwen in hun provincie van woonplaats werkt, blijft 72,1% van de mannen in de provincie van hun woonplaats om hun job uit te oefenen.
In sommige Belgische gemeenten is de trend omgekeerd en verlaat een hoger aandeel van werkende vrouwen de provincie van hun woonplaats om te gaan werken. Dat is vooral het geval in de gemeenten Drogenbos en Wemmel, waar respectievelijk 67,5% en 58,8% van de mannen hun provincie verlaten om hun job uit te oefenen, tegenover 79,5% en 69,5% van de vrouwen.
[1] De werkgelegenheidsgraad van de 20-64-jarigen geeft het aandeel van de werkende beroepsbevolking in de bevolking van 20 tot en met 64 jaar weer.
De "werkende beroepsbevolking" omvat alle werkzame personen
The activity rate of people aged 15-64 is the share of the labour force in relation to the working age population (15 to 64 years old).
On 1 January 2021, 73% of people aged 15-64 in Belgium were economically active, i.e. employed or unemployed. This activity rate varies according to the place of residence. With an activity rate of 66.5%, the Brussels-Capital Region has the lowest share of economically active population, followed by Wallonia with 70.7% and finally Flanders with 75.6%.
Even if the methodology used for the construction of the labour market variables differs between 2011 and 2021, in particular in terms of identification of the unemployed and the employed, the geographical breakdown remains similar. As in 2011, some areas stand out with a higher activity rate: West Flanders (excluding the coast), the west of East Flanders, the east of the province of Liège, the north of the province of Antwerp and most municipalities around Brussels. Conversely, the lowest activity rates are mainly observed in big cities that stand out from other municipalities in their respective provinces: Charleroi (63.6%), Mons (66.2%), Liège (66.7%), Namur (69.9%), Arlon (70.1%), but also Antwerp (71.3%). Outside the Brussels-Capital Region, Hainaut remains the province with the lowest activity rate.
The employment rate of people aged 15-64 is the share of employed people in relation to the working age population (15 to 64 years old).
For the whole country, 66.7% of the working age population was employed on 1 January 2021. The employment rate reaches 71.4% in Flanders, versus 62.2% in Wallonia and 55.7% in the Brussels-Capital Region. Despite a higher employment rate in the north than in the south of Belgium, as in 2011, the German-speaking community stands out from the rest of the Walloon Region with higher rates within the municipalities along the German border (Butgenbach, Bullange, Amblève and Saint-Vith) as well as the municipalities in the north of the province of Liège (Voeren, Dalhem and Thimister-Clermont). As in 2011, within the regions themselves, changes are smaller in Flanders than in Wallonia. In the Flemish Region, the employment rate of people aged 15-64 varies from 69.9% (province of Antwerp) to 73% (province of West Flanders), while in the Walloon region, it fluctuates between 58.9% (province of Hainaut) and 67.4% (province of Walloon Brabant).
The employment rate of people aged 20-64 is the share of the employed population in relation to the population aged 20-64.
While the employment rate of people aged 20-64 amounts to 71.7% in Belgium on 1 January 2021, it only reaches 59.9% in the Brussels-Capital Region. Even if the employment rate varies less in this region, it is higher in the municipalities in the south and the east of the Brussels-Capital Region. In the Flemish Region, the employment rate of the 20-64 age group reaches 76.5% versus 67.2% in the Walloon Region. In the Brussels periphery, the provinces of Flemish and Walloon Brabant have one of the highest employment rates in their respective region. Within these regions, there are differences between the western and eastern municipalities. West Flanders is the province with the highest employment rate in the country, followed by Flemish Brabant and East Flanders, while the provinces of Limburg and Antwerp show rates that are closer to those of Walloon provinces. Conversely, in Wallonia, the employment rate is the highest in the east and the province of Hainaut has the lowest employment rate in Belgium after the Brussels-Capital Region. Despite the few municipalities with the highest employment rates in the Walloon Region, the province of Liège maintains a low employment rate compared to its neighbouring provinces of Namur and Luxembourg. Indeed, Liège is one of the 10 municipalities with the lowest employment rate in Belgium.
The unemployment rate is the percentage of unemployed persons in the comparable active population.
In Belgium, the unemployment rate reaches 8.6% on 1 January 2021. It is not evenly distributed across the different regions of the country, varying from 5.5% in the Flemish Region to 16.3% in the Brussels-Capital Region. In the Walloon Region, it is estimated at 12.1%. However, this regional difference is smaller than in 2011. At intra-regional level, the variations are more significant within the Walloon Region, from 13.9% in the province of Hainaut to 8% in the province of Luxembourg, than in the Flemish Region where it varies from 6.8% in the province of Antwerp to 4.6% in the provinces of Flemish Brabant and West Flanders.
In Wallonia, as in 2011, the Sambre-Meuse line and the municipalities along the French borders are distinguished by a higher unemployment rate, while a few municipalities in the south of the province of Luxembourg (Vaux-sur-Sûre, Léglise, Attert and Etalle) as well as in the east of the province of Liège (Butgenbach, Bullange, Amblève, Saint-Vith and Burg-Reuland) show very low unemployment rates. In Flanders, the municipalities of Antwerp, Turnhout, Ostend and Blankenberge stand out from the other municipalities with a higher unemployment rate. In general, we observe a higher unemployment rate in the big cities: Liège (22%), Charleroi (21%), Mons (16.9%), Namur (14%), Antwerp (11.6%), Ghent (8.2%) and Bruges (5%) show one of the highest unemployment rate in their respective province.
In the Brussels-Capital Region, the southern and eastern municipalities have a lower unemployment rate.
The Census 2021 in a nutshell
The Census 2021 is a snapshot of the population living in Belgium on 1 January 2021. It provides a wide range of figures on housing and demographic, socio-economic and educational characteristics of the citizens. The objective of the Census is twofold: to comply with the European regulation[1] and to produce statistics to address national specific needs (public services, international organizations, researchers, enterprises and private individuals).
Previously based on an exhaustive survey of all citizens, since 2011 the Census has been based exclusively on the use of administrative databases.
Definitions
The various statistical units
Population
The population taken into account for the Census 2021 is the residential population, as registered in the National Register of Natural Persons (RNPP) on 1 January 2021. The Belgian population includes Belgians and non-Belgians who have been allowed or authorised to settle or to stay in Belgium but does not include non-Belgians living on the territory for less than three months, asylum seekers and non-Belgians in an illegal situation[2].
Private households
This group includes people living alone in a dwelling and groups of several people living in the same dwelling and providing themselves with essentials for living.
Family nuclei
A family nucleus is defined as two or more persons who belong to the same household and who are related as husband and wife, as partners in a registered partnership, as partners in a consensual union, or as parent and child.
Living quarters
Living quarters refer to all quarters used as the usual residence of one or several persons.
Conventional dwellings
Conventional dwellings are separate units (surrounded by walls and covered by a roof) that are independent (with a direct access from the street or a staircase, passage) and designed to be used as a permanent dwelling.
Occupied conventional dwellings
Occupied conventional dwellings are conventional dwellings used as the usual residence of one or several private households.
Variables and their description
Sex
This variable is used to distinguish men from women.
Age
The age reached in completed years of age on 1 January 2021.
Place of usual residence
The place of residence is that registered in the National Register on 1 January 2021. So this is the place of legal residence.
The Belgian municipalities have changed between 2011 and 2021. In the comparisons shown on this website, the figures for 2011 are broken down according to the municipalities of 2021.
Locality
A locality is defined as a distinct population cluster, that is an area defined by population living in neighbouring or contiguous buildings. This area constitutes a group of buildings, none of which is separated from its nearest neighbour by more than 200 meters.
The Belgian municipalities have changed between 2011 and 2021. In the comparisons shown on this website, the figures for 2011 are broken down according to the municipalities of 2021.
Situation on the labour market
The situation on the labour market gives information on the economic activity of the population (employed, unemployed and inactive persons) during the last week of the year 2020.
Employed persons
The following persons are considered as employed :
- persons aged 15 or over and
- who either performed at least one hour of work in the last week of the year for pay or profit, in cash or in kind; or
- were temporarily absent during the reference period from a job to which they maintained a formal attachment .
Unemployed
The unemployed comprise:
- persons aged 15 years or over who were:
- without work , that is, were not in wage employment or self-employment during the reference week; and
- currently available for work , that is, were available for wage employment or self-employment during the reference week and for two weeks after that; and
- actively seeking work , that is, had taken specific steps to seek wage employment or self-employment within four weeks ending with the reference week.
Pension or capital income recipients
Recipients of pension or capital income should be assigned to the Pension or capital income recipients category only if they
- have attained the national minimum age for economic activity ( 15 years or over ); and
- are outside of the labour force, and
- receive a pension and/or capital income.
Even if a formal link with their enterprise is maintained, people in early retirement are considered as retired, as they do not intend to return to work.
Students
Students comprise all persons attending school who:
- have attained the national minimum age for economic activity ( 15 years or over ); and
- are outside of the labour force, and
- are not recipients of a pension or of capital income.
Labour force
The “labour force” comprises all persons who fulfil the requirements for inclusion among the employed or the unemployed during the reference week.
Employed population
The employed population includes all employed persons during the reference week.
Inactive population
The inactive population includes all persons who were neither employed nor unemployed during the reference week. So, people under 15, the retired, capital income recipients, students and other inactive persons, such as housewives/househusbands, people incapacitated for work, people receiving a social integration allowance, etc. are considered to be outside the labour force, as long as they are not in paid employment, are not looking for work or are not immediately available for work.
Employment characteristics
Persons aged 15 and over who were employed during the reference week are classified according to the situation in the occupation of their last job. People with more than one job are classified according to their main activity, which is determined based on the income received and then the time spent on the job (percentage of hours worked compared to a full-time worker or average number of hours worked).
Remark
The comparison with the previous Census requires some caution: this publication is based on the Belgian population and the Census 2011 has as reference the European definition of the population.
Information on the difference between the Belgian population and the Census 2011 population.
[1] COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) 2017/543 of 22 March 2017 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EC) No 763/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on population and housing censuses as regards the technical specifications of the topics and of their breakdowns.
[2]Information on the difference between the Belgian population and the Census 2011 population.