It is still difficult for employers in Drenthe to find staff. In our province there are 2.5 times as many vacancies as there are short-term job seekers. This makes it difficult for employers to find staff.
This is evident from the report Region in Focus 2025-2026from the UWV. In thirteen other labor regions the labor market is even tighter than in Drenthe. There are more than five times as many vacancies in Central Utrecht and Zeeland.
The tightness on the labor market causes problems, for example in crucial sectors such as healthcare, education and childcare. “Staff shortages can be an obstacle for these sectors, but society as a whole suffers from them,” emphasizes labor market advisor at the UWV Erik Oosterveld.
“There are waiting lists in healthcare and childcare. For example, less can be built and the energy transition is stagnating due to a lack of staff, among other things,” he says.
While the number of jobs nationally will probably continue to rise gradually, the supply in Drenthe will actually decrease by 0.3 percent between 2024 and 2027. There is a significant difference per sector: in healthcare, welfare and construction, the number of jobs continues to increase, while in the temporary employment sector and industry, jobs are declining.
In Drenthe, the so-called labor participation rate is high. Many people who can and want to work have a job. Over the past ten years, labor participation in Drenthe increased from 64.6 percent in 2015 to 70.0 percent in 2024.
Despite this, there are certainly ways for employers to find new staff. In Drenthe there are about 17,000 people whose labor potential – whether and how many people can work – is not being used sufficiently.
This concerns 8,000 part-time workers who already have work, but want and can work more hours. In addition, there are 5,000 unemployed people who recently looked for work and are immediately available. Finally, there are about 4,000 semi-unemployed people: people who are temporarily unavailable due to illness, disability, training or another reason, but may be so in the future.
The labor market continues to change due to technological developments, aging and scarcity. “It is especially important for working people to continue attending schools, to keep up with their field and to learn different or new skills,” says Oosterveld.
He has different advice for employers. “Recruiting based on skills, instead of just diplomas and work experience, increases the pool of candidates. For job seekers, this makes it easier to switch to crucial sectors with many vacancies and that is desperately needed given the shortage.”