La Louvière: Forty Contracts at the End of the First Wave of Weerts Supply Chain Jobdays

“I registered with Forem de La Louvière in January 2025 and took the entrance test in June of the same year”, explains Anthony. “A medical selection followed in August and classes could start last October. However, the training is done in modules. After completing the first one, I resumed classes in January with the theory part that included four major exams for C and CE licenses. There will be another module for learning Dutch at the end of March and finally, a module for the practical test.”

Anthony is motivated. However, the scattered module format is not his choice. Yet, this may cost him dearly. He has just learned that his unemployment benefits have been suspended. “Following a training program does not cover me, as it is not a continuous training of at least three months”, sighs the Louviérois.

Anthony raised concerns about his situation with ONEM, which responded that a derogation could be obtained. “I am then referred to Forem, which simply applies the reform. It’s discouraging. What do we do in these cases?” wonders the quadragenarian. “Some colleagues have stopped the training even though they started it a year ago and made sacrifices to continue. Without unemployment benefits, we could directly look for a job. But then we would lose our trainee status and it would be impossible to finish our heavy truck driver training. I return to classes this Monday, but I don’t receive anything. I don’t know how I will manage to get around and pay my bills.”

From Forem’s perspective, they explain that the rules are what they are. “We don’t know how to interpret the legislation,” comments the Forem spokesperson. Does this legislation have loopholes for specific cases like Anthony’s? The job seeker hoped to bounce back with this training for a career in demand. But he doesn’t know how he will land.