ST. VITHVennbahnstraße 4/2

4780 St. Vith

Tel. +32 (0)80 280 060

EUPENHütte 79

4700 Eupen

Tel. +32 (0)87 638 900

info@adg.be

www.adg.be

The Arbeitsamt is the public employment serviceof the German-speaking Community of Belgium.

Job Placement

and Employment Services

Career and Training Advice

Career Information

Consultancy Services

Training and Further Training

Labour Market Research

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DUTIES

The legislator assigned three principal dutiesto the Employment Office: the promotion ofemployment, the organisation of occupationaltraining and the provision of careers advice.

The Employment Office is also required to perform tasks within the framework of employ-ment and training policy. These include occu-pational and labour market research, adviceconcerning labour market policy for theGerman-speaking Community and partici-pation in various local, national andregional bodies and institutions.

SERVICES

The Office provides services tojob-seekers, but also to otherclients, such as employees,school leavers and apprentices.The offer includes job placement,advice and assistance in the search

for work, assistance with entering orreturning to the work place, career and trai-

ning advice, as well as information on careersand the labour market.

The services provided to employer clientsinclude the search for suitable applicants forvacancies, the provision of training and furthertraining for employees and consultancy services,notably information, advice and support tobusinesses seeking public grants as well asadministrative and technical assistance.

ORGANISATION

The Employment Office of the DG is a publicinstitution with administrative autonomy. Theday-to-day management of its affairs is super-vised by an administrative council. This is com-posed of representatives of the social partners,the local authorities, the secondary schools,

public and private training provi-ders and the government of

the DG.

THE GERMAN-SPEAKINGCOMMUNITY

The German-speaking territory of Belgium isbordered by the Netherlands, Germany,Luxembourg and French-speaking Wallonia. Itsofficial name as a political entity is German-speaking Community of Belgium (DG).The DG consists of two distinct parts:the North is smaller, but moredensely populated than thesouth, a rural area, generallyknown as the Belgian Eifel.Approximately 74,000 inhabi-tants live here in an area of854 km2. The majority speakGerman but most have alsomastered at least one other ofBelgium’s three national languages.

ECONOMICAL ENVIRONMENT

Approximately 2.200 companies employingabout 22.000 people are registered in theGerman-speaking Community. The economy ischaracterised by the presence of a multitude ofsmall and medium-sized businesses whichcover a wide variety of occupations: the workingof metals, woods and plastics, commercial activity, the provision of commercial and publicservices, agriculture and forestry. A furthercharacteristic of the local employment marketis the existence of a high degree of inland andcross-border commuting.

The diversity and competitiveness of localskills, the excellent regional accessibility, theproximity of urban areas, such as Brussels,Antwerp or Cologne and a high quality of lifehave to be considered as important economicadvantages.

THE POLITICAL FRAMEWORK

Belgium is a federal state with a very complexinstitutional structure. There are two kinds ofpolitical entities (except the federal authority):the regions and the communities. In simpleterms, the regions are responsible for economicconcerns, the communities for matters relatingto the personal interests of its citizens in theareas of culture, education, health, socialpolicy and employment. The German-speakingCommunity possesses autonomous legislativepower within its own spheres of competenceand has its own parliament and government.

The Employment Office for the DG was createdin 2000 after labour market powers were trans-ferred from the Walloon Region to the German-speaking Community. The employment authori-ties of the other regions are the VDAB(Flanders), le FOREM (Wallonia) and ACTIRIS(Brussels).

www.dglive.be www.adg.be