DIRECTORATE-GENERAL STATISTICS AND ECONOMIC INFORMATION

PRESS RELEASE 15 June 2011

Better wages for commuters 500,000 people commute to another region for their jobs. This is 11.4% of the working population in Belgium. People from Brussels are the most mobile Belgians: 15.2% commutes to the Flemish or Walloon Region. With a degree of mobility of 9.8% on the other hand, people from Flanders are the least mobile Belgians. The largest commuter flows are found to be from the Flemish and Walloon Regions to Brussels. 371,000 Flemish and Walloon people commute to the Brussels-Capital Region, accounting for almost 75% of the interregional commute. Commuter flows between the Flemish and Walloon Regions are more limited: 27,000 Flemish people commute to the Walloon Region and 40,000 Walloon people commute to the Flemish Region. The number of people commuting to another region has not changed drastically in the past 20 years. A considerable increase is however noticeable in the degree of mobility of people from Brussels. Also that of Walloon people has increased, albeit to a lesser extent. The number of Walloon people commuting to the Flemish Region has more than doubled in the past 20 years. The degree of mobility of Flemish people on the other hand has slightly decreased. Commuting pays off: Flemish and Walloon people who work in another region on average receive a higher salary than people who stay in their own region. Flemish people who work in the Brussels-Capital Region for example on average receive 21% more than Flemish people who earn their living in the Flemish Region. These figures are shown in the 2010 results of the Labour Force Survey by Statistics Belgium.

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1. The commute between regions 1.1 Region of residence versus region of work In 2010, the working population in Belgium consisted of 4,379,000 people 1 . The large majority of these people worked in their own region, but 11.4% of the Belgian population had their workplace in a different region from their residence. In other words, 500,000 people commute to another region for their jobs. The chart below clearly shows the appeal of the Brussels-Capital Region. Chart 1: Breakdown of the working population by place of residence and place of work (2010) 70% Place of residence 60%

Place of work

61,9% 57,7%

50% 40% 30% 28,9% 26,0% 20% 16,3% 10% 9,2% 0% Brussels-Capital Region

Flemish Region

Walloon Region

Source (mandatory acknowledgement): Statistics Belgium

The Brussels-Capital Region is the place of residence for 9% of the working population, whereas 16% of the Belgian population earns a living in the region. In other words, 52% of people who work in Brussels live in another region and commute to the capital on a regular basis. As a result, the Brussels-Capital Region is the only region where commuting leads to a net inflow. The Flemish and Walloon Regions therefore have a higher number of active residents than people that work in these regions. 62% of the Belgian working population for instance lives in the Flemish Region and 29% in the Walloon Region, whereas both regions represent 58% and 26% of the labour force in terms of place of work.

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The 110,000 people who live in Belgium but work abroad are not taken into account in this text. The total working population including people who work abroad amounts to 4,489,000. -2-

Table 1: Breakdown of the working population by place of residence and place of work and their corresponding flows (2010) Brussels-Capital Region

Flemish Region

Walloon Region

Place of work

714,000

2,526,000

1,139,000

Place of residence

404,000

2,709,000

1,267,000

Net difference

310,000

-183,000

-128,000

Source (mandatory acknowledgement): Statistics Belgium

These figures seem to suggest that commuting mainly occurs from the Flemish and Walloon Regions to the Brussels-Capital Region. However, the reality is more complicated, as there is also a mutual exchange of labour force between the Flemish and Walloon Regions.

1.2 Commuter flows between regions Before we discuss these flows in more detail, we will first look at the general degree of mobility. The degree of mobility indicates which part of the working population works in another region than where one lives. As mentioned above, the average interregional degree of mobility of the working population in Belgium amounts to 11.4%. People from Brussels are the most mobile: 15.2% commutes to the Flemish or Walloon Region (see table 2). With a degree of mobility of 9.8% on the other hand, people from Flanders are the least mobile Belgians. 13.6% of Walloon people commute to the Brussels-Capital Region or to the Flemish Region. Men are more mobile than women (12.6% compared to 10.0%) and the degree of mobility increases with the level of education. 15.8% of highly educated people commute to another region for their jobs. Table 2: Degree of mobility by region, sex and level of education (2010) Belgium Region

Sex Level of education

Degree of mobility 11.4% 15.2% 9.8% 13.6% 12.6% 10.0% 8.1% 8.7% 15.8%

Brussels-Capital Region Flemish Region Walloon Region Men Women Low Average High

Source (mandatory acknowledgement): Statistics Belgium

Table 3 indicates where inhabitants of the different regions work (= outflow percentages). Based on the degree of mobility we could already derive that 84.8% of people who live in Brussels also work in their own region. 10.6% has a job in the Flemish Region, 4.6% in the Walloon Region. 8.8% of people who live in the Flemish Region work in Brussels, 1% works in the Walloon Region. Consequently, 90.2% earns a living in their own region. 10.4% of the working population in the Walloon Region works in the Brussels-Capital Region, 3.2% in the Flemish Region. 86.4% of Walloon people work in their own region. These percentages should not be confused with the actual flows between the regions. In absolute figures the Flemish Region has 100,000 people more who commute to the Brussels-Capital Region than the Walloon Region (239,000 Flemish people compared to 132,000 Walloon people). When we compare the exchange between the Flemish and Walloon Regions, we can notice that more Walloon people work in the Flemish Region (40,000) than the other way round (27,000). In addition, about as many Walloon people work in the Flemish Region as people from Brussels (40 to 43,000).

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Table 3: Place of residence versus place of work: outflow percentages (2010) Place of work Place of residence

Total

BCR

Flemish Region

Walloon Region

BCR

100% 404,000

84.8% 342,000

10.6% 43,000

4.6% 18,000

Flemish Region

100% 2,709,000

8.8% 239,000

90.2% 2,443,000

1.0% 27,000

Walloon Region

100% 1,267,000

10.4% 132,000

3.2% 40,000

86.4% 1,094,000

Source (mandatory acknowledgement): Statistics Belgium

Based on the place of work, table 4 indicates from which regions employees are recruited. The figures suggest that employers from Brussels find slightly less than half of their employees in their own region (47.9%), 33.5% in the Flemish Region and 18.5% in the Walloon Region. Flemish and Walloon employers on the other hand recruit at least 96% of their employees from their own regions. The number of employees from another region is very limited compared to the number of employees from the own region (varying from 1.6% to 2.3%). Table 4: Place of residence versus place of work: inflow percentages (2010) Place of work Place of residence

BCR

Flemish Region

Walloon Region

Total

100% 714,000

100% 2,526,000

100% 1,139,000

BCR

47.9% 342,000

1.7% 43,000

1.6% 18,000

Flemish Region

33.5% 239,000

96.7% 2,443,000

2.3% 27,000

Walloon Region

18.5% 132,000

1.6% 40,000

96.0% 1,094,000

Source (mandatory acknowledgement): Statistics Belgium

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2. Evolution of commuting in the past 20 years The number of people commuting to another region has not changed drastically in the past 20 years. In 2010 11.4% of the working population worked in another region; in 1990 this was 10.7%. Remarkable are the marked increase in the degree of mobility of people from Brussels and the decrease in mobility of Flemish people (see chart 2). Chart 2: Evolution of the degree of mobility (1990-2010) 16% 1990

15,2%

14%

2010

13,6%

12% 11,9%

10% 9,8%

10,3%

9,8%

8% 6% 4% 2% 0% Brussels-Capital Region

Flemish Region

Walloon Region

Source (mandatory acknowledgement): Statistics Belgium

In 1990 people from Brussels were the least mobile: 9.8% earned a living in a different region, compared to 10.3% of Flemish people and 11.9% of Walloon people. In 2010 the degree of mobility of people from Brussels and the Walloon Region rose to 15.2% and 13.6% respectively. The degree of mobility of Flemish people has gone down in the past 20 years. They commute to the Brussels-Capital Region relatively less than they did 20 years ago. In 1990 9.6% of employed Flemish people worked in Brussels, as opposed to only 8.8% in 2010. The commute from the Flemish to the Walloon Region on the other hand has gone up slightly, from 0.7% to 1%. In concrete figures almost 27,000 Flemish people commute to the Walloon Region, compared to 14,500 in 1990 (chart 3). The Walloon commute to the Brussels-Capital Region has increased slightly in the past 20 years. The mobility to the Flemish Region has gone up more strongly: 3.2% of employed Walloon people commute to the Flemish Region, compared to 1.7% in 1990. The number of Walloon people commuting to the Flemish Region amounts to more than 40,000 in 2010, more than double the number of 1990.

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Chart 3: Evolution of the commute between the Flemish and Walloon Regions (1990-2010) 45.000 40.000 35.000 30.000 25.000 20.000 15.000 10.000 5.000 Walloon Region=>Flemish Region

0 1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Flemish Region=>Walloon Region 2000

2002

2004

2006

2008

2010

Source (mandatory acknowledgement): Statistics Belgium

3. Higher salaries for commuters Commuting to another region often involves larger distances and loss of time. It may therefore be interesting to see if commuters are financially rewarded for their mobility. The table below clearly shows that Flemish and Walloon people who are willing to work in another region receive on average higher salaries 2 .

Place of residence

Table 5: Average net monthly salary of full-time employees by place of residence and place of work (2010) 3 Place of work Brussels-Capital Region Flemish Region Walloon Region 1.832 1.973 Brussels-Capital Region 1.984 (-8%) (-1%) 2.119 2.024 Flemish Region 1.747 (+21%) (+16%) 1.980 1.909 Walloon Region 1.697 (+17%) (+12%) Source (mandatory acknowledgement): Statistics Belgium

The average net monthly salary of Flemish people who work in their own region is €1,747. Commuting to the Walloon Region, however, means a monthly profit of €277, whereas working in the Brussels-Capital Region adds no less than 21% or €372 extra to their bank accounts each month. People from the Walloon Region who work in their own region on average earn a net salary of €1,697 each month. Commuting to the Flemish Region adds €212, whereas the Brussels-Capital Region is also for them financially speaking the most interesting place of work: the average pay check there is €283 or 17% higher. Commuting to another region seems financially speaking less interesting for people from the BrusselsCapital Region. Because the capital hosts well-paying sectors and offers an overrepresentation of highlyeducated people, it boasts the highest average salaries in the country. People from Brussels who work in the Flemish region are on average not as highly educated, which explains their less generous paycheck.

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Only people who work full-time jobs are taken into account. The percentages between brackets reflect the influence working in a different region from the place of residence has on the average net salary

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Technical data All figures in this text are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). The labour force sample survey is a survey of private households, held throughout the year. It is based on an effective sample of 42,176 households in 2010, in other words 83,596 persons (respondents) of working age (15 and older). The figures presented in the text are based on 42,452 persons employed.

Additional information For additional information, please contact Freddy Verkruyssen, Head of Public Relations (tel +32 2 277 70 76, e-mail [email protected]).

Source Source: Statistics Belgium

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