Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Over two-thirds of scheduled IC trains will operate on Monday as per SNCB’s announcement for the period of Metisp-Protect’s railway worker strike. Metisp-Protect labour union’s strike will initiate its action Sunday at 10 pm, extending until 30 March.
The Belgian National Railway Company (SNCB) has announced through an exclusive summary that two out of three InterCity (IC) trains will run on Monday during a Metisp-Protect independent railway union strike. The labour strike will start at 10 pm Sunday and continue until March 30.
All P trains operating on Sunday evening will function normally because they depart and arrive before the strike begins while serving destinations including Louvain-la-Neuve Liège and Brussels. P train operations will experience major disruptions on Monday because only one of every five trains will run during peak hours.
Metisp-Protect union members will stage a strike that affects train operations between Sunday night and March 30. The operating trains for IC and L/S services will consist of two out of three IC trains combined with three out of five L/S trains on Monday.
The majority of P train services scheduled for peak hours will disappear, with just one in every five trains set to operate. SNCB suggests using the available online journey planner to view alternate transport options for Monday because the tool operates from the beginning of Sunday. Throughout the course of the strike, the planner tool will get daily updates showing actual changes in train services.
What led to the railway strike and what are the key issues?
Rail workers stage their ongoing strike through Metisp-Protect because they strongly oppose the proposed Belgian railway pension system changes. The proposed pension alignment between the railway and general pension schemes has caused widespread opposition within the worker ranks.
Union representatives predict that upcoming modifications will result in a decrease in staff benefits together with increased work durations. The current strike belongs to a widespread industrial movement because railway unions staged multiple protests within recent weeks. A previous strike in February 2023 cut away 70% of railway train services because it affected more than 500,000 daily commuters. The train services will face disruptions from March 26 through to March 30 because 60% of InterCity (IC) trains and 80% of P trains will be affected during peak times.
The P train service, which serves about 50 thousand passengers each day, faces the largest impact as SNCB plans to operate only 20% of its trains on Monday. This strike exposes mounting tensions between railway employees and decision-makers who are confronting ideological opposition between union protection of worker benefits and government attempts to transform retirement pensions. The public transport sector faces challenges when performing fiscal reforms alongside protecting workers’ welfare benefits.
