Economic importance of the Flemish maritime ports: Report 2002

TABLE 3EMPLOYMENT(FTE)1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 Relativeshare in2002(in p.c.)Changefrom 1995to 2002(in p.c.)Annualaveragechange(in p.c.)Direct effectsAntwerp ............ 59,618 59,596 59,703 58,695 57,776 59,300 61,074 59,472 57.8 - 0.2 0.0Ghent................ 27,905 26,885 27,300 27,493 27,909 28,370 29,348 28,309 27.5 1.4 0.2Ostend .............. 4,909 4,847 4,688 4,290 4,296 3,745 3,981 3,960 3.8 - 19.3 - 3.0Zeebrugge ........ 9,394 9,051 9,117 9,122 9,493 9,801 9,846 9,465 9.2 0.8 0.1Outside ports .... 2,778 2,032 1,871 1,942 1,883 1,835 1,950 1,736 1.7 - 37.5 - 6.5Total directeffects ............... 104,604 102,410 102,680 101,541 101,358 103,051 106,199 102,942 100.0 - 1.6 - 0.2Indirect effects1st level ............ 62,694 63,621 63,367 64,415 65,544 64,859 66,980 62,720 56.9 0.0 0.02nd level ........... 25,661 26,075 26,111 26,720 27,818 28,010 29,022 27,035 24.5 5.4 0.83rd level ............ 10,348 10,521 10,845 11,150 11,821 12,003 12,455 11,614 10.5 12.2 1.7Next levels ........ 7,228 7,348 7,917 8,183 8,967 9,158 9,502 8,873 8.0 22.8 3.0Total indirecteffects ............... 105,931 107,566 108,240 110,468 114,150 114,031 117,959 110,242 100.0 4.1 0.6Totalemployment .... 210,535 209,976 210,920 212,009 215,508 217,081 224,158 213,184 - 1.3 0.2Source: NBB.3.2.1 Changes in direct employmentThe level of employment seems relatively stable in the ports, down by an average of just 0.2 p.c. per annum(table 3). This slight contraction is due mainly to Ostend, where employment has deteriorated on average by3.0 p.c. per annum. At the port of Antwerp, however, there is considerable stability. With regard to Ghent andZeebrugge, the workforce there has increased on average by 0.2 and 0.1 p.c. respectively per annum. Thelargest rise in overall direct employment, recorded in 2001, was 3.1 p.c., the employment level amounting to106,199 FTE. The year 2002 saw this gain disappear as it fell again to 102,942 FTE for the four ports. Over theperiod under review, the port of Antwerp accounted on average for 57.6 p.c. of the total workforce in the sector. In2002 it was in fact employing 59,472 FTE.3.2.2 Changes in indirect employmentThere is a certain degree of stability observable here as well, since indirect employment has increased by just0.6 p.c. on average per annum 28 . However, a significant increase in indirect employment, taking all levelstogether, was recorded in 1999 (+ 3.3 p.c.). First level indirect employment (first rank suppliers) recorded itsstrongest growth in 2001 with 3.3 p.c. The same year, total indirect employment increased by 3.4 p.c. The largestfall over the period in question was in 2002, with a decrease in indirect employment of 6.5 p.c. taking all portstogether (- 6.4 p.c. at first level). After peaking at 117,959 FTE in 2001, indirect employment taking all levelstogether fell back to 110,242 FTE in 2002.Subcontracting was a very marked trend at the end of the nineties and these estimates show the extent of thephenomenon and its evolution. For the years under review, estimated total indirect employment for all the Flemishmaritime ports, taking all levels together, produced an average figure of 107.7 p.c. of direct employment. Thisratio grew to 112.6 p.c. in 1999 and stabilised at 110.7 p.c. in 2000 and 111.1 p.c. in 2001. It then fell again to107.1 p.c. in 2002, i.e. less than the average level for the period. Subcontracting in the ports covered by the studytherefore seemed to show a slight decline in the most recent years. Chapter 4 examines the extent of thisphenomenon port by port.28Calculated using the employment allocation formula (see annex 1). This figure corresponds to an average annual change of+ 0.2, + 2.2, - 7.4 and + 2.4 p.c. respectively in indirect employment in the ports of Antwerp, Ghent, Ostend and Zeebrugge(see chapter 4).NBB WORKING PAPER No. 56 - JUNE 2004 11