Introduced in 2009, the allowance was set at €300 for one year and applied to everyone in a job. In 2010, it was restricted to the 600,000 lowest earners in the region and cut back to €125. From next year, it will disappear altogether.

The Flemish government took the decision to end the measure last week, arguing it would save some €75 million and help to tackle the budget deficit. Minister-president Kris Peeters said the measure had outlived its usefulness. "The job bonus was intended as a response to the unemployment trap," he said. "It was supposed to increase the gap between unemployment benefit and a
salary, but we discovered that the system missed the target."

To make up for the loss of the bonus, new money will be made available for income- based childcare in 2011 and 2012. Flemish labour minister Philippe Muyters said he will take measures to stimulate employment.

In a reaction to the announcement, Dirk Van Mechelen, who had introduced the job bonus during his time as minister, said: "The Flemish government is pushing through a tax increase and making the difference between a net wage and benefits smaller, just at the time when the reverse is needed. The battle against unemployment is clearly no longer a priority for them."

The Christian union ACV issued a press release: "Once again, workers are the victims of this government's drive for savings. Workers on low incomes have suffered enough from this financial and economic crisis." The union claimed that the scrapping of the measure took place without consultation and "without any real evaluation".