Belgium’s three main trade-union federations (FGTB/ABVV, CSC/ACV and CGSLB/ACLVB) have filed a 24-hour strike notice for Thursday 12 March 2026 in protest against the Federal Government’s latest budget-saving measures. The industrial action will affect a wide range of critical airport functions—security screening, baggage handling, ground operations and even air-traffic-control staffing. Brussels Airport in Zaventem and Brussels South Charleroi Airport have already warned that the “most realistic scenario” is the cancellation of a majority of departures that day, with arriving flights also facing lengthy immigration and baggage delays.
For business travellers and corporate mobility managers, the timing is awkward: 12 March falls in the middle of the post-winter conference season, when multinationals typically rotate teams through EU headquarters in Brussels. Airlines have begun sending re-booking notices and have activated flexible change-fee waivers. Mobility managers are therefore advised to move non-essential travel or reroute teams through Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Amsterdam-Schiphol or Frankfurt, and to build in extra time for any unavoidable same-day connections.
Should any rerouting require fresh or updated travel documents—say, an emergency visa for a client meeting rescheduled to a non-EU venue—VisaHQ’s Belgian desk (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) can take the paperwork off your hands. The platform offers expedited processing, courier pick-up and live status tracking, giving travellers one less variable to worry about when strikes compress layover windows and force last-minute itinerary changes.
![Belgium’s 12 March National Strike Poised to Ground Most Flights]()
The strike is part of a broader wave of labour unrest in Belgium’s public sector, fuelled by cost-of-living pressures and a dispute over index-linked wage adjustments. Although the unions are legally required to ensure minimal “skeleton” services in emergency-response areas, no such guarantee extends to commercial flights. Previous nationwide strikes—in January 2024 and March 2025—saw up to 80 % of Belgian air movements cancelled, costing airlines an estimated €20 million in passenger re-routing, crew positioning and compensation.
Companies with posted workers or expatriate staff in Belgium should also anticipate knock-on effects on rail and urban transport, as the same unions cover many SNCB and De Lijn employees. As always, travellers should monitor real-time flight alerts, reconfirm ground-transport reservations and keep proof of any additional expenses for possible EU 261 compensation claims.
Looking ahead, the strike underscores Belgium’s chronic dependence on a single primary hub. While regional airports such as Ostend and Antwerp continue to expand, they lack the immigration facilities to absorb large numbers of diverted long-haul passengers. The episode therefore renews calls from industry groups for a contingency framework—similar to the UK’s “gold command”—to keep a limited flow of priority flights operating during national stoppages. (Source: The Brussels Times, 25 Feb 2026)
For business travellers and corporate mobility managers, the timing is awkward: 12 March falls in the middle of the post-winter conference season, when multinationals typically rotate teams through EU headquarters in Brussels. Airlines have begun sending re-booking notices and have activated flexible change-fee waivers. Mobility managers are therefore advised to move non-essential travel or reroute teams through Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Amsterdam-Schiphol or Frankfurt, and to build in extra time for any unavoidable same-day connections.
Should any rerouting require fresh or updated travel documents—say, an emergency visa for a client meeting rescheduled to a non-EU venue—VisaHQ’s Belgian desk (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) can take the paperwork off your hands. The platform offers expedited processing, courier pick-up and live status tracking, giving travellers one less variable to worry about when strikes compress layover windows and force last-minute itinerary changes.
The strike is part of a broader wave of labour unrest in Belgium’s public sector, fuelled by cost-of-living pressures and a dispute over index-linked wage adjustments. Although the unions are legally required to ensure minimal “skeleton” services in emergency-response areas, no such guarantee extends to commercial flights. Previous nationwide strikes—in January 2024 and March 2025—saw up to 80 % of Belgian air movements cancelled, costing airlines an estimated €20 million in passenger re-routing, crew positioning and compensation.
Companies with posted workers or expatriate staff in Belgium should also anticipate knock-on effects on rail and urban transport, as the same unions cover many SNCB and De Lijn employees. As always, travellers should monitor real-time flight alerts, reconfirm ground-transport reservations and keep proof of any additional expenses for possible EU 261 compensation claims.
Looking ahead, the strike underscores Belgium’s chronic dependence on a single primary hub. While regional airports such as Ostend and Antwerp continue to expand, they lack the immigration facilities to absorb large numbers of diverted long-haul passengers. The episode therefore renews calls from industry groups for a contingency framework—similar to the UK’s “gold command”—to keep a limited flow of priority flights operating during national stoppages. (Source: The Brussels Times, 25 Feb 2026)
