A national strike by major unions in Belgium hits public transport, airports and ships

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Brussels as part of a national strike to protest government reforms and spending cuts that have grounded flights and severely disrupted public transport.

Belgium’s three largest trade unions protested against pensions and other measures taken by the center-right government of Prime Minister Bart de Wever aimed at reducing the budget deficit.

There were no services at Belgium’s second largest airport in Charleroi, and all departures and many arrivals at Brussels Airport were cancelled.

Although trains remained running, most buses, trams and subways in the capital stopped.

Shipping was suspended at Europe’s second-largest port, Antwerp, until Wednesday due to staff shortages, and more than 100 ships waited in the North Sea for permission to dock at three ports, according to Belgian maritime and coastal services MDK.

Belgium has witnessed several strikes since Flemish nationalist Bart de Wever took office last February.

By midday, police said 80,000 demonstrators had joined the demonstration in the Belgian capital.

Public sector workers have been protesting against austerity measures and against a government that is increasingly seen as leaning to the right.

They roamed the streets of central Brussels, many wearing the red or green colors of the main unions.

A key issue for unions is the government’s plan to increase the number of days Belgians work each year before they can collect their pensions, as well as to end special schemes for several sectors including those working in the army and railways.

De Wever’s government also announced measures including a two-year cap on claiming unemployment benefits. Further cuts are due in next year’s budget, and some proposals such as cutting child benefit or increasing value-added tax have already been put forward.

“It is time for us to come together,” said 29-year-old Anaïs. “It is always the same segment of the population that has to tighten its belts.”

She was holding a sign bearing the number 67 with a red line, and she objected to raising the retirement age, saying: “65 is enough. 67 is too late. We are being asked to work more, to work longer hours. This is not fair.”

Raising the retirement age was approved ten years ago, long before the De Wever government came to power, but it remains deeply unpopular and the government aims to corral it and make early retirement more expensive.

Thierry Bodson of the ABVV union told protesters that “the battle against the De Wever government is not just a battle for a day or a year – it is for an entire generation,” Belga news agency reported.

“We need to fight for our rights,” said Vanessa, a mother of two who came from Charleroi.

“I’m worried about what actions will be taken. What kind of future will my children have?” She told the BBC.

The federal government is not alone under pressure to cut spending. Belgium’s complex, multi-level governance means that regional authorities are also imposing austerity measures.

The ruling coalition in Belgium’s largely French-speaking Walloon region announced that teachers at the upper levels of secondary schools will have to work two extra hours per week.

Many of them joined the protests today.

Sandrine (48 years old), who works in the field of education, said: “There is nothing clear, and it is really worrying, but if upper-level teachers have to work more, many jobs will be eliminated.”

Although the protests were largely peaceful, several incidents of vandalism and arson occurred early in the morning and some masked people clashed with police later.