The Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI) stands in strong solidarity with Belgian trade unions and its affiliates AVC-CSC and FGTB-ABVV as they mobilise today against the brutal austerity measures announced by the hard right government. Time and again, these reactionary forces promise to serve workers and the disadvantaged, but in reality, they only fuel fear and vulnerability while proposing and implementing policies that undermine labour rights and social protections. 

The newly announced government agreement is nothing short of an all-out assault on working people, particularly the most vulnerable. From restricting unemployment benefits to attacking pensions, limiting social protections, and increasing workplace flexibility at the cost of worker security, the agenda is clear: make the poor pay while sparing the wealthiest.

This austerity push comes at a time when workers are already struggling under the weight of a severe cost of living crisis. Meanwhile, big businesses continue to benefit from state support, and the wealthiest remain shielded from any real contribution to social solidarity.

This is not just a Belgian issue, it is part of a global fight against the far right and its anti-worker agenda. The hard-right thrives on fear, scapegoating migrants, women, minorities, and the most vulnerable while protecting the wealthy and powerful. They use anger against elites as a tool to divide, yet when in power, they serve those same elites. They do not offer solutions: only deception and division.

But the trade union movement has something they do not: real, direct contact with workers, in workplaces and communities.

“From all over the world, we send our solidarity to the Belgian unions taking to the streets today. Their struggle is our struggle. Wherever workers’ rights are threatened, we must hold the line and stand firmly against attacks on social justice.

Democracy is collective by nature, and through solidarity, we can fight back against fear and isolation. The power of the labour movement lies in its unity, and together, we will push back against those who seek to dismantle decades of progress,” said BWI General Secretary Ambet Yuson.