Long-term work incapacity (i38)

  •  30/11/2023
  • objective 
  •  assessment 

In 2021, long-term work incapacity reached 10.9 percent in Belgium. To achieve the sustainable development goal by 2030, this figure must decrease. Between 2005 and 2021, the trend is unfavourable (assessment of November 2023).

The chart will appear within this DIV.
The chart will appear within this DIV.
The chart will appear within this DIV.
The chart will appear within this DIV.
The chart will appear within this DIV.

Long-term work incapacity - Belgium

percentage of employment, unemployed included

 2005201020152016202020212021//20052021//2016
Belgium5.46.48.59.010.711.04.54.1
//: Average Growth Rates

National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (2022), direct communication (14/12/2022); National Accounts Institute and National Social Security Office (2022), direct communication (31/05/2022); calculations FPB.

Long-term work incapacity by region - Belgium

percentage of employment, unemployed included

 2005201020152016202020212021//20052021//2016
Brussels-Capital Region5.85.87.37.48.99.32.94.5
Flemish Region4.85.87.57.89.19.34.23.6
Walloon Region6.27.810.911.314.014.25.34.7
//: Average Growth Rates

National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (2022), direct communication (14/12/2022); National Accounts Institute and National Social Security Office (2022), direct communication (31/05/2022); calculations FPB.

Long-term work incapacity by sex - Belgium

percentage of employment, unemployed included

 2005201020152016202020212021//20052021//2016
females5.97.710.911.514.314.75.95.1
males5.15.56.87.08.08.02.92.7
//: Average Growth Rates

National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (2022), direct communication (14/12/2022); National Accounts Institute and National Social Security Office (2022), direct communication (31/05/2022); calculations FPB.

Long-term work incapacity by age - Belgium

percentage of employment, unemployed included

 2005201020152016202020212021//20052021//2016
<250.20.30.40.40.40.32.3-4.1
25-493.44.05.45.66.46.54.22.8
50-6413.414.317.518.322.122.83.44.4
>641.11.71.71.71.61.62.5-1.5
//: Average Growth Rates

National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (2022), direct communication (14/12/2022); National Accounts Institute and National Social Security Office (2022), direct communication (31/05/2022); calculations FPB.

Long-term work incapacity by disease - Belgium

percentage of total

 2005201020152016202020212021//20052021//2016
mental31.633.234.534.636.136.40.91.1
musculoskeletal system and connective tissue25.527.130.330.331.831.71.40.9
nervous system6.26.05.96.15.65.6-0.7-1.7
tumors6.16.56.25.95.55.4-0.7-1.7
circulatory system9.88.06.35.95.14.9-4.3-3.6
other20.819.216.817.315.916.0-1.6-1.6
//: Average Growth Rates

National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (2022), direct communication (14/12/2022); calculations FPB.

Definition: the proportion of people (aged 16 or above) in work incapacity for more than one year in the total employment (wage earners and self-employed) of the private sector in Belgium. Unemployed persons with access to this status are also included in the calculation. The indicator is calculated by the FPB using data from the National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance, the National Accounts Institute and the National Social Security Office.

Goal: the proportion of people in long-term work incapacity must decrease.

The Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs adopted by the UN in 2015 include goal 8: “Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all”.

The Federal Long-Term Strategic Vision for Sustainable Development includes objective 11: “Working conditions will be adapted over the whole career in order to ensure a better quality of life and to be able to work longer” (Belgian Official Gazette, 08/10/2013). It is therefore necessary to know the development of the proportion of people who should potentially have working conditions adapted to their needs.

International comparison: there are no comparable data at European level.

UN indicator: the selected indicator does not correspond to any monitoring indicator for the SDGs but is related to goal 8, as it gives some information about the capacity of the population to take part actively in the labour market.

Sources

More information is available in French and Dutch.