The search for a new job takes an average of 4 months, but even with an engineering degree, Stefan (37) has been without work for almost a year: “Why was that vacancy even online?”

Today it takes an average of 133 days, or more than four months, to find work again after being dismissed. This is evident from figures from HR company Randstad Risesmart. Behind that average are intense searches for a new job, which often take even longer. Marketer Sofie Noé (53) and engineer Stefan Van Damme (37) are proof of this. Both lost their jobs last year and tell how they have been diligently searching for months, balancing between hope and despair. “You start to think: should we postpone a trip, should we still make that investment?”

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