Belgium’s long-running railway labour dispute took a fresh twist on 29 January 2026 when the unions of train operator SNCB/NMBS lodged an urgent appeal with the Council of State. The move comes after HR Rail—the human-resources arm of SNCB and infrastructure manager Infrabel—rejected a strike notice covering 5, 10 and 12 February, arguing that unions had skipped mandatory consultation steps.
Workers’ representatives from CGSP Cheminots/ACOD Spoor insist the rejection undermines social dialogue and breaches freedom of association. They point to 31 strike days logged since January 2025 and claim management is stonewalling talks over staffing ratios, safety budgets and pension reform. The Council of State will have to decide quickly; if it overturns the refusal, Belgium could face a fresh wave of rail stoppages just days after a disruptive five-day walkout ended on 30 January.
For business travellers and global mobility teams the uncertainty is acute. The previous strike saw international services on Thalys, Eurostar and ICE cut by up to 60 %, forcing rerouting through Paris or Amsterdam and wreaking havoc on corporate travel budgets. Mobility managers with assignees commuting between Brussels and European hubs are already drawing up contingency plans, including flexible tickets, hotel allocations near client sites and remote-work options.
![Belgian rail unions file urgent appeal after HR Rail blocks February strike notice]()
Amid that scramble for alternative routes, travel coordinators can lean on VisaHQ’s Belgium portal (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) to simplify the paperwork side of any last-minute rerouting. The platform offers real-time entry-requirement checks and expedited visa processing for multiple nationalities, allowing companies to redeploy staff via neighbouring airports or rail corridors without getting bogged down in consular red tape.
Employers should also anticipate knock-on effects at Brussels Airport, where ground-handling and security staff rely heavily on rail. During the recent stoppage, average queue times at immigration jumped 30 %, highlighting the compound impact of multi-modal disruption. Should the February strikes proceed, companies may need to amend Posted-Worker notifications when expected work locations or schedules change, to remain compliant with Belgian and EU labour-mobility rules.
In parliament, Mobility Minister Jean-Luc Crucke urged both sides to resume talks, warning that persistent labour unrest threatens Belgium’s reputation as a logistics and conference hub. A mediation session is pencilled in for 1 February, but union leaders maintain industrial action remains the only lever to secure guarantees on staffing levels and job security.
Workers’ representatives from CGSP Cheminots/ACOD Spoor insist the rejection undermines social dialogue and breaches freedom of association. They point to 31 strike days logged since January 2025 and claim management is stonewalling talks over staffing ratios, safety budgets and pension reform. The Council of State will have to decide quickly; if it overturns the refusal, Belgium could face a fresh wave of rail stoppages just days after a disruptive five-day walkout ended on 30 January.
For business travellers and global mobility teams the uncertainty is acute. The previous strike saw international services on Thalys, Eurostar and ICE cut by up to 60 %, forcing rerouting through Paris or Amsterdam and wreaking havoc on corporate travel budgets. Mobility managers with assignees commuting between Brussels and European hubs are already drawing up contingency plans, including flexible tickets, hotel allocations near client sites and remote-work options.
Amid that scramble for alternative routes, travel coordinators can lean on VisaHQ’s Belgium portal (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) to simplify the paperwork side of any last-minute rerouting. The platform offers real-time entry-requirement checks and expedited visa processing for multiple nationalities, allowing companies to redeploy staff via neighbouring airports or rail corridors without getting bogged down in consular red tape.
Employers should also anticipate knock-on effects at Brussels Airport, where ground-handling and security staff rely heavily on rail. During the recent stoppage, average queue times at immigration jumped 30 %, highlighting the compound impact of multi-modal disruption. Should the February strikes proceed, companies may need to amend Posted-Worker notifications when expected work locations or schedules change, to remain compliant with Belgian and EU labour-mobility rules.
In parliament, Mobility Minister Jean-Luc Crucke urged both sides to resume talks, warning that persistent labour unrest threatens Belgium’s reputation as a logistics and conference hub. A mediation session is pencilled in for 1 February, but union leaders maintain industrial action remains the only lever to secure guarantees on staffing levels and job security.
