Planning summer staff: when to start and how to avoid peaks

Find out how Flemish employers plan their summer staff sensibly in 2026, from the first step to a complete schedule without last-minute stress.

In short: start planning your summer staff today. Anyone who waits until July loses the best candidates. The main points:

• Start recruiting at least 6 to 8 weeks before the summer peak
• Build a fixed student pool with Recruit a Student to avoid repeated searching
• Leave all the paperwork, from the Dimona declaration to payroll, to Recruit a Student

You know the feeling all too well

It is early June, the diary is filling up and suddenly you realise: summer is around the corner and you have not arranged any extra hands. Or worse: last summer you tried to recruit yourself, but it became too late, too chaotic and with far too much paperwork at the last moment.

You are in good company. Every year Belgian employers underestimate how quickly the market for summer staff fills up. And anyone who then also has to arrange the contracts, Dimona declarations and payroll themselves loses valuable time that is better spent on the business.

Good news: anyone who acts now and has the right partner at their side can count on that support again next year.

When do you start planning summer staff?

When is the right moment to start your summer planning? The answer is simple: now. Or rather, yesterday.

Successful recruitment for the summer peak takes at least 6 to 8 weeks of preparation. That means employers expecting their peak in July have to get moving in early June at the latest. Anyone whose peak falls in August has until mid-June, but every week of delay narrows the pool of available candidates.

Why that lead time? Students sign up for their summer jobs early. Popular sectors such as logistics, retail and cleaning are already recruiting actively in May. An employer still placing adverts in July has a fraction of the candidates who were available in June.

Through Recruit a Student the process goes considerably faster. We have a broad network of screened students in Antwerp, Brussels and Ghent, ready to be deployed quickly. You say what you need, we supply the right profiles. That gains you weeks compared with searching yourself.

A practical plan for employers:

Weeks 1 and 2 (now)

Determine your staffing needs: how many extra people, for which tasks, in which periods?

Weeks 3 and 4

Recruit a Student selects and screens candidates on the basis of your profile

Weeks 5 and 6

You meet the selected students and give the go-ahead

Weeks 7 and 8

Recruit a Student arranges the contracts, the Dimona declaration and onboarding. All of it is taken care of for you.

How do you avoid staffing peaks and last-minute panic?

How do you avoid falling into the same trap every year, too few people at the wrong moment? The key lies in structured planning and a reliable partner who takes the heavy lifting off your hands.

Draw up a historical peak map

Look at the past 2 to 3 years: when were there shortages, which weeks were busiest? That gives you an accurate picture of your real peak periods.

Build in buffers

Always plan 10 to 15% extra capacity. When someone drops out, Recruit a Student steps in quickly from your fixed pool.

Plan leave early

Anyone who submits their leave before 15 May has certainty. That way your schedule stays fully covered at the busiest moments.

Separate the fixed core from the flexible layer

Your permanent staff carry the ongoing workload. Student workers form the flexible layer that absorbs peaks, without a fixed cost.

How do you build a fixed student pool with Recruit a Student?

How do you stop searching again every year and move to an approach that pays for itself? With Recruit a Student you build a fixed student pool: a group of screened, trusted students who already know your company and can be deployed again every season.

This is exactly where Recruit a Student makes the difference. We keep your pool active, maintain contact with the students and make sure the right people are available when you need them. No job adverts to place, no CVs to wade through, no calls to strangers.

Employers with a fixed pool through Recruit a Student save on average 30 to 40% of their recruitment time per season. Onboarding is minimal because the students already know how you work, and quality is predictable because we only send back proven profiles.

And the paperwork? It is fully taken care of. Recruit a Student arranges:

• the Dimona declaration for every student
• drawing up and following up the student contracts
• payroll through our payroll agency
• tracking the student quota so that you stay safely within the limits

You focus on your core business. We arrange the rest.

Ready to approach this summer season differently?

Recruit a Student helps Belgian employers build a fixed pool of motivated students and takes over all the paperwork.

What does planning too late cost?

What are the concrete consequences if you plan your summer staff too late and try to arrange everything yourself? The costs are higher than many employers realise, and they are not only financial.

Higher recruitment costs	Anyone searching at the last minute pays a premium for rush procedures or settles for less suitable candidates.
Lower-quality intake	The best students have already gone. You choose from what is left, not from the ideal candidates.
Increased pressure on permanent staff	Without enough reinforcement your permanent team carries the extra load. That leads to stress, mistakes and, in the longer term, absence or departures.
Administrative errors and risks	Urgent Dimona declarations, contracts that are not right or an exceeded student quota. Anyone doing this alone under time pressure runs real risks. With Recruit a Student that is a thing of the past.

In short: the price of delay and of doing it yourself is always higher than the cost of planning early and sensibly with the right partner.

What does this mean in practice for your HR strategy?

On the basis of the above, there are five actions every employer should take in June:

Start your needs analysis now	How many extra hands do you need, exactly when and for which tasks? The more concrete it is, the more precisely Recruit a Student can work for you.
Contact Recruit a Student this week	The earlier you start, the wider the choice of available students in your region.
Set the leave schedule for your permanent staff	Combine it with your peak planning so that you get a realistic picture of your net staffing during the summer months.
Leave the paperwork to Recruit a Student	Dimona, contracts, payroll. All of it is taken care of for you.
Think long term	Every student who performs well this year is a candidate for your fixed pool. Recruit a Student manages that pool for you, ready for the next season.

Planning summer staff is a yearly process that calls for structure, forward planning and the right partner at your side.

At Recruit a Student you have one fixed contact who knows your company. No being put through, no repeating explanations. Your account manager guides you at every step: from selecting the right students to managing your fixed pool and all the paperwork, from the Dimona declaration to payroll.

You call one number. We arrange the rest. That way you start the summer with a full team and end it with peace of mind.

• Qualified and screened staff
• A fixed student pool, tailored to you
• Complete administrative relief