More jobs in hospitality despite 'white cash register'

The number of jobs in the Belgian hospitality industry increased by 2.2% in the first three months of this year compared to the same period last year, write Het Laatste Nieuws and De Morgen on the basis of figures from the FPS Social Security.

The figures show that the nationwide introduction this year of the 'white cash register', which records all staff details and makes undeclared working virtually impossible, has not led to the industry's downfall, as many initial opponents of the system feared it would. Instead, the number of people employed in Belgium's hotels, restaurants and cafés rose from 123,334 last year to 126,004 in the first quarter of this year.

The number of so-called 'flexi-jobs' also increased, with about 20,000 people in 5,439 businesses this year taking advantage of the more flexible regulations regarding extra earnings from side jobs, according to figures from Philippe De Backer, federal secretary of state for fighting social fraud.

"The white register and numerous checks have been hard on a lot of businesses, and there are still too many bankruptcies,” admits De Backer. “But the sector is professionalizing. Many people are taking the leap to start a business because they see that it can be done fairly. More fair competition will lead to a profitable sector with less undeclared money."