Flights grounded as Belgium strikes over pension reform

A man stands with luggage in front of a departure board full of cancellations, during a general strike, at Brussels International Airport in Zaventem, Belgium, Monday, March 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

A general strike over proposed pension reforms severely disrupted air traffic and other services in Belgium on Monday, with the country’s two main airports cancelling all outbound flights.

Government plans to scrap a special pension scheme and align the retirement age for all civil servants with that of the private sector at 66 have enraged trade unions and many workers.

A large section of security and maintenance staff, including baggage handlers, were expected to down tools, prompting the Brussels and Charleroi airports preemptively to cancel all departures

Most inbound flights were also affected by the 24-hour strike called by the Christian CSC and socialist FGTB unions.

In Brussels, public transport was severely disrupted, with metro, tram, and bus services suffering delays and cancellations on Monday morning.

Disruptions were also foreseen at the port of Antwerp and other key services. Prison guards, hospital staff and waste collection workers were among those expected to join the strike.

Flemish nationalist Bart De Wever took office as prime minister in early February after months of coalition talks following Belgium’s federal elections in June last year.

The government says pension reform is needed. Rising life expectancy is increasing costs and the country is grappling with a budget deficit whose size violates European Union rules.

“Our children and grandchildren also deserve a pension. If we do nothing, the cost for them will increase by 14 billion euros ($15 billion) over the next five years,” Pensions Minister Jan Jambon said this weekend.

But trade unions have been incensed by the push.

Monday’s planned protest comes six weeks after a nationwide strike that drew tens of thousands of people into the streets.

“The scale and number of social cuts planned by the federal government is unprecedented,” said trade union FGTB, which also opposes plans to curtail unemployment benefits.