Belgium’s three largest trade-union federations—ACV-CSC, FGTB-ABVV and CGSLB-ACLVB—have coordinated a rare, simultaneous 72-hour walk-out from Monday 24 November through Wednesday 26 November. The industrial action targets the Federal Government’s proposals to slow automatic wage indexation and raise the statutory retirement age, but its immediate fallout will be felt by travellers, shippers and employers across Europe.
Public-sector rail operator SNCB has warned that only a fifth of normal services will run, and most international trains transiting Belgium will be curtailed or rerouted. Freight rail operators estimate diversions through the Netherlands could add 6-12 hours to time-sensitive supply chains linking the Port of Antwerp to Germany’s Ruhr Valley.
![Belgium Braces for 72-Hour National Strike Shutting Down Air, Rail and Urban Transport]()
Urban mobility will be equally hit: Brussels’ STIB/MIVB metro expects “severe disruption,” while regional bus services in Flanders and Wallonia will operate minimum service levels. Ride-hailing queues are already lengthening as taxis anticipate blockades on arterial roads leading to the capital.
For global-mobility teams the timing is awkward, arriving just as many multinationals begin end-of-year project-handoffs and holiday expatriate rotations. Several Fortune 500 companies told The Brussels Times they have authorised hotel extensions and per-diem increases for stranded staff, while others have triggered remote-work contingencies.
Legal analysts say the breadth of the strike could reignite debate over Belgium’s ‘right to strike’ jurisprudence, especially if critical infrastructure—such as fuel depots or data centres—is paralysed. Businesses with large mobile workforces should monitor last-minute governmental decrees; in past disputes the Interior Ministry has ordered minimum-service thresholds with only hours of notice.
Public-sector rail operator SNCB has warned that only a fifth of normal services will run, and most international trains transiting Belgium will be curtailed or rerouted. Freight rail operators estimate diversions through the Netherlands could add 6-12 hours to time-sensitive supply chains linking the Port of Antwerp to Germany’s Ruhr Valley.
Urban mobility will be equally hit: Brussels’ STIB/MIVB metro expects “severe disruption,” while regional bus services in Flanders and Wallonia will operate minimum service levels. Ride-hailing queues are already lengthening as taxis anticipate blockades on arterial roads leading to the capital.
For global-mobility teams the timing is awkward, arriving just as many multinationals begin end-of-year project-handoffs and holiday expatriate rotations. Several Fortune 500 companies told The Brussels Times they have authorised hotel extensions and per-diem increases for stranded staff, while others have triggered remote-work contingencies.
Legal analysts say the breadth of the strike could reignite debate over Belgium’s ‘right to strike’ jurisprudence, especially if critical infrastructure—such as fuel depots or data centres—is paralysed. Businesses with large mobile workforces should monitor last-minute governmental decrees; in past disputes the Interior Ministry has ordered minimum-service thresholds with only hours of notice.
