The three primary trade unions in the country have organized a nationwide protest opposing the government’s reform plans.

On Tuesday, between 40,000 and 70,000 individuals marched through Brussels’ streets. The protesters assembled in response to a call from the nation’s three leading trade unions to criticize the federal government’s reforms, which these unions label as «anti-social».

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The main concerns and objectives of the protest include pensions, purchasing power, and the automatic wage indexation.

The unions have strongly criticized a pension reform that reduces workers’ benefits and have also opposed changes to the automatic adjustment of wages.

The demonstration unfolded amid a context of rising energy prices triggered by the conflict in the Middle East.

This nationwide protest is part of a longer campaign by trade union representatives, ongoing for over eighteen months, targeting the ruling coalition government led by Prime Minister Bart De Wever, who is a Flemish nationalist.

Throughout the country, public transport services were operating at limited capacity. Additionally, Charleroi Airport suspended all flights planned for the day.

The previous national protest, held on March 12, attracted between 80,000 and 100,000 participants in Brussels.