Stijn Baert

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Stijn Baert

Who is Stijn Baert?

Baert was born in Lokeren on 14 October 1983. He graduated as a Civil Engineer in 2006, then gained a Master’s degree in Economics in 2008 and a Ph.D. in Economics from Ghent University in 2013. He has been full-time professor in empirical labour economics at Ghent University since October 2015.

He is the main promoter of UGent @ Work, the interdisciplinary consortium of 24 University of Ghent professors who lead research into work and the labour market. In addition, he is affiliated with the University of Antwerp as a part-time professor and with the Catholic University of Louvain, Global Labour Office (GLO), IMISCOE and the Institute for the Study of Labour (IZA) as a research fellow. Stijn Baert's research is mainly in the broad field of labour economics, with a focus on (i) the transition from school to work, (ii) labour market discrimination and (iii) work and health. He has published in renowned journals, such as European Economic Review, Labour Economics and the Journal of Applied Econometrics. He has received a great deal of recognition and acknowledgement for his (doctoral) research.

In 2015 and 2016, Stijn Baert was included in IDEAS' authoritative worldwide top 100 young economists (ranked 17th in 2016). In 2017 he was nominated for the choice of the most talented researcher in Flanders and Belgium, organised by the Dutch magazine 'New Scientist'. In January 2021, IDEAS ranked him 9th globally within his age group in their ranking of economists according to their scientific impact. Stijn's research and interpretations have been mentioned more than 1,750 times in the national and international media.

His proposals on accelerated degressivity for unemployment benefits and sectoral field tests on labour market discrimination have had a clear impact on policy. In 2015, Stijn Baert received an 'Annual Award for Science Communication' from the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts for his endeavours in science communication. In 2020, he was placed second in a ranking of Flemish 'thought leaders'. Baert is one of the six independent experts who, as a relaunch committee, are to assist the Flemish Government in the recovery of the economy following the corona crisis.

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    Challenges for our Flemish and Belgian labour market

    In this keynote, Professor Baert addresses the challenges of our labour market. The subject on which he is without any doubt the leading voice in Flanders today. He does this by sharing his metaphor of the iceberg on our Flemish and Belgian labour market. In fulfilling the central ambition in just about all coalition agreements, namely to increase the employment rate, the policy focuses on activating a visible top of job seekers. A much larger labour reserve below the waterline is forgotten: the inactives. However, there are many more of them and our country differs from other countries in this respect. Professor Baert then placed the most current challenges and the solutions he believes in within that metaphor. The keynote particularly appeals to an audience of enterprising, working and thrifty Flemings with an interest in politics and/or economics. Professor Baert touches on striking figures, but at the same time tries to keep his keynote approachable and entertaining. It is possible to tailor this keynote to the wishes of the audience.

    The war for talent: about the fire, the puzzle and the pond

    Where workers used to have to fight for a job, companies are now fighting for an employee, so says the witticism. In this keynote, Professor Baert objectifies this fierce war for talent. Proving that it is effectively raging more fiercely now than in the past and more with us than elsewhere, he warns that we are in danger of going from a record number of vacancies to a record number of missed opportunities. Afterwards, he analyses two underlying problems: the puzzle between available jobseekers and vacancies does not fit and the pond employers have to fish from is too small because of the high inactivity in our country. Professor Baert concluded with some solutions aimed at both policymakers and companies. The keynote particularly appealed to an audience of enterprising, working and thrifty Flemings interested in politics and/or economics. Professor Baert touches on striking figures, but tries to keep his keynote accessible and entertaining at the same time. It is possible to tailor this keynote to the wishes of the audience.

    Labour market discrimination: 10 years undercover

    Whether it is discrimination against people from migrant backgrounds, women, people over 55, people with disabilities or LGBTQs, Professor Baert and his team investigated it. Often on the basis of so-called practical tests. They sent out more than 25,000 fictitious job applications, in numerous experiments. It led to several scientific recognitions and leading scientific publications. In this keynote, Professor Baert introduces his audience to his kitchen secrets, shares the most striking results and offers solutions. Depending on the number of hours planned for preparation, he can tailor this keynote (to a limited extent) to the audience present. The keynote particularly appeals to an audience with an interest in diversity. Professor Baert touches on striking figures, but at the same time tries to keep his keynote approachable and entertaining.

    Trends in the labour market

    In this keynote, Professor Baert discusses important trends he sees in work and the labour market. The war for talent, the trend towards teleworking, diversity in the labour market and artificial intelligence (AI) are important topics. He links the latest figures and studies to opportunities for the government, for companies and employees. Professor Baert therefore provides an update for each keynote. This keynote is engaging for a wide audience. Both for employees and employers, both in the private and in the public sector, both for 25-year-olds and over-65s. It is possible to deepen this keynote towards the needs of the audience.

    It's the economy, stupid! 10 basic concepts and their importanceIt's the economy, stupid! 10 basic concepts and their importance

    Many would like to know more about it, without being knocked around with difficult words and graphs. The economy. Economic sciences. Stijn Baert teaches an introductory economics course at UGent and with his commitment to clarity, he is the right person to bring 10 fundamentals of economics. Low-threshold, but with the feeling that you get an intuition of deeper concepts and thus understand economic things better later. A refresher for some, a first introduction for others. What is economics? Why is it a science? What determines how expensive a product is? Except for the board game, why is monopoly a bad thing? Are economists really in two schools? Such questions will be answered. If desired, Stijn Baert will take some extra preparation time to include questions the audience would like to see answered.

    Well-being at work: overrated?

    The number of burnouts is currently going through the roof in our country. The responsibility of employers? Plant racketeering by employees? In this keynote, Professor Baert takes a stand. He explains that investing in well-being at work is in everyone's interest: employers, employees and the government. And he draws on scientific research for avenues on how to increase this well-being. It is possible to tailor this keynote to the wishes of the audience.

    10 work lessons towards more pay, more focus and more satisfaction

    For many Flemish people, running from one deadline to the next, staying at the wheel of their own career is a challenge. That is, at the end of the year to have done that which really makes a difference. And that which one looks back on with satisfaction at the end of one's career. Together with 18 colleagues from different disciplines, Stijn Baert wrote a book that explains how, according to science, you make the best work choices. To get promoted faster. To earn more. To avoid burn-out. To telecommute in the most balanced way possible. To keep your head from overflowing during the working day. To leave more working time for what is valuable. In this lecture, he launches 10 surprising tips that can make all the difference.