Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Belgian railway unions ACV-Transcom and ACOD Spoor will strike from March 2025 to July 2025. A national strike is set for March 17, 2025, with further protests on May 31, 2025. De Mey confirmed 4 actions per month from April 2025 to June 2025 if talks fail.
The 9-day railway strike in Belgium has escalated. The 2 major unions, ACV-Transcom and ACOD Spoor will join the strike, launching their series of strikes and actions between March 2025 and July 2025.
According to the unions, their primary concerns are pension reforms and working conditions for railway personnel. The unions are open to dialogue with the government and have scheduled meetings with the Mobility and Pensions Ministers to discuss their grievances.
Will Belgian rail strikes and union protests disrupt March-July?
Belgian labour groups are preparing a series of rallies and strikes in the next months. The first will be a nationwide strike on March 17, 2025. This will be followed by an interprofessional day of action on March 31, 2025, where unions from different sectors will join forces. The unions believe sustained pressure is necessary to achieve their goals in ongoing negotiations with employers and government representatives.
“We start on March 17, when there is a national strike,”
Says De Mey.
“On May 31, there is an interprofessional day of action of the joint union front. From April to June, there will be 4 days of action per month. These are decentralized actions per region.”
These actions will take place in different regions across the country, with the exact dates and locations to be determined month by month. The unions are using a flexible strategy that allows for revisions dependent on the negotiations with employers and government representatives. The unions stated that if negotiations do not generate satisfactory results, they will increase their actions.
According to the officials, the ongoing railway strike in Belgium has caused significant disruption while some improvements have been reported, passenger frustration remains high, particularly due to the lack of reliable alternative schedules and the absence of automatic compensation for season ticket holders.
They mentioned that the major unions’ decision to take action separately suggests a strategic approach, allowing them to negotiate with the government while still maintaining pressure through industrial action. The unions have made it clear that if their demands are not met, further disruptions are inevitable in the coming months.
