Valorisation des demandeurs d'emploi en dehors du salariat traditionnel

Abstract

The active welfare state has undoubtedly contributed to shaping the world of work as we know it. Faced with an ever-increasing pressure towards full employment, responsibility is placed in the hands of the worker: it is up to them, assisted by State measures, to be the entrepreneur of their own social reintegration. In this context, this contribution aims to bring to light the ambiguities in the logics of valorization of job seekers in Wallonia outside of traditional salaried employment.

The study focuses on the analysis of Zero Long-Term Unemployment Territories (now Territoir’ES), Articles 60 and 61, volunteering, and training. The first two constitute a specific form of return to employment via an employment contract, while the latter two act as exceptions to the principle of inactivity within the framework of receiving unemployment benefits.

Three successive angles are explored. The first, a legal approach, provides an overview of positive law (as it stood at the time of the July 2025 reform). The second, socio-economic, mobilizes J. Van Ypersele’s analytical grid distinguishing productivist and post-productivist paradigms, as well as Gary Becker’s Human Capital theory. Finally, these considerations are illuminated by semi-structured interviews conducted with strategic and operational actors from Forem and the CPAS.

The analyses reveal a prevalence of productivism, sometimes nuanced by a logic of "deferred productivity". Furthermore, limiting the duration of benefits has exacerbated these paradoxes and turned reintegration through training into a race against time.

In short, the law manipulates concepts in an inconsistent manner. A multidisciplinary approach is essential to restore a coherent and understandable dialogue between the law and the actors who apply it.