Belgium grinds to a halt for one-day general strike

Belgium was brought to a standstill on Monday by a 24-hour general strike as the country’s powerful unions grounded air, rail and sea links, and forced businesses, schools and government offices to close.

The strike is the latest in a series of actions against the austerity policies of the centre-right government headed by the Ffrancophone, liberal prime minister, Charles Michel, who took office in October.

The unions are protesting against plans to kickstart the economy and balance the books by raising the pension age, freezing wages and cutting public services.

All train services, including the Eurostar, were halted, and airspace closed, while local bus and trams remained in their depots. Roads were blocked in Brussels, while pickets gathered in force around the European quarter, the National Bank, the canal and the Audi factory. With most schools closed, many Belgians who could reach their workplace chose to stay at home to look after their children.

Riot police used water cannon to disperse protesters outside the headquarters of the Flemish separatist N-VA, the biggest of the four parties in the government coalition. There were also reports of lorry drivers breaking through union lines, with pickets claiming injuries as the vehicles forced their way past.

This is the first general strike since 1993 and comes after weeks of regional and industrial action. Last month, a march of more than 100,000 people in Brussels against austerity ended in violent protests that left 112 police officers injured.

BECI, the Brussels chamber of commerce, said the day-long strike could cost up to €200m (£159m) and 2,000 jobs in the capital.

Union leaders say they have broad support for the action. Marie-Hélène Ska, who heads the ACV-CSC union, said the strikes reflected a growing frustration. “Workers feel they are not being heard. It’s time to change that,” she said.

Thierry Bodson, the general secretary of the FGTB union, said anti-austerity arguments had gained momentum in recent weeks. “Even if some people don’t agree with the strike, the vast majority understand our reasons,” he said. But the N-VA leader, Bart De Wever, accused the FGTB of being the “armed wing” of the francophone socialist party, the Parti Socialiste (PS). “People have been stirred up with disinformation and lies,” he said.

Ministers say changes are needed if Belgium’s public debt is to be brought down from 105% of GDP, way above the 60% guideline for eurozone countries. Last month, the European commission gave the Belgian government until March to bring its budget in order or face extra scrutiny.

Michel says there is no alternative to austerity aimed at cutting some €11bn from the budget over the next five years. Officials point out that the country has the third highest tax burden in the OECD, at 44.6%, while annual growth for 2014 is projected at just 0.9%. Michel’s coalition wants to raise the retirement age from 65 to 67 from 2030, and freeze the wage indexation system that automatically lifts salaries in line with inflation.

According to Marc De Vos, a labour law professor at Ghent University and director of the non-partisan Brussels-based Itinera Institute, the strikes are less about policy and more about kneejerk political rhetoric. “The unions think Margaret Thatcher has been elected here, out to hurt the poor and needy,” De Vos says. “But we have only seen a fraction of what has happened in Britain.

“In fact, the government is middle of the road in budgetary matters – and the European commission and IMF say it is not enough.”