Belgian Teachers Strike for 10 Days Over Education Reforms
Teachers across Belgium’s French Community will walk off the job from Monday, May 18 through Wednesday, May 27 in a coordinated 10-day strike called by the Christian trade union CSC Enseignement, with support from the socialist union SETCa-SEL. The industrial action is timed to culminate on the day the Parliament of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles (FWB) votes on the second program decree — a package of austerity measures that has sparked months of escalating tensions between the education sector and the MR-Les Engagés government.
According to RTBF, the CSC Enseignement called on all its affiliates to join the movement, stating in a communiqué: “Faced with repeated attacks and the constant contempt of Minister Valérie Glatigny (MR) supported by Minister-President Elisabeth Degryse (Les Engagés), the CSC-Enseignement calls on all its affiliates to join the movement by going on strike from Monday, May 18 to Wednesday, May 27, the day of the vote on the second program decree in plenary session of Parliament.”
What the Reforms Entail
The decree-program 2, which the FWB parliament will vote on May 27, contains several controversial measures designed to reduce the entity’s budget deficit. As reported by La Libre Belgique, the key provisions include:
- A 10% increase in teaching hours for upper secondary teachers, raising face-to-face time from 20 to 22 hours per week without salary compensation
- Tightened sick leave regulations for tenured (statutory) teachers
- Higher tuition fees (minerval) for 58% of students in higher education
Teachers argue that the official face-to-face hours represent only a fraction of their actual workload. Educators in Liège have reported working 40 to 45 hours per week when accounting for lesson preparation, grading, and administrative tasks — a concern that has fueled localized strikes threatening end-of-year exams in recent weeks.
Union Unity and Escalation
The strike call marks a rare show of unity between Belgium’s major union federations. The socialist union SETCa-SEL has expressed support, noting that an indefinite strike notice was filed as early as September 2025. The union stated it “supports and covers any action” regarding potential budget savings measures, according to L’Avenir.
The CSC Enseignement also issued a direct appeal to parliamentarians, urging them to “finally take into account the anger that is stirring the world of education at the moment when they will have the responsibility to vote.”
Background of Rising Tensions
The current escalation is the latest chapter in months of growing conflict. The FWB government, led by Minister-President Elisabeth Degryse (Les Engagés) and Education Minister Valérie Glatigny (MR), announced the austerity measures in autumn 2025 to address the entity’s budget deficit.
On April 9, 2026, between 6,000 and 10,000 teachers, students, cultural workers, and non-profit sector employees marched in Brussels to protest the cuts. Minister Glatigny responded at the time by stating: “A protest does not change the budgetary reality overnight,” a comment that further inflamed tensions.
Localized strikes in Liège province schools have already disrupted classes, with teachers threatening to impact exam schedules. The 10-day strike now extends this action across the entire French Community.
Implications and Outlook
The strike’s timing — just before the critical end-of-year exam period — raises significant concerns about the academic calendar for hundreds of thousands of students in French-language schools across Wallonia and Brussels.
Politically, the outcome of the May 27 vote will be a major test for the MR-Les Engagés coalition. If the government pushes the decree through without concessions, further escalation from the now-united union front appears likely. The core tension pits fiscal responsibility — reducing the FWB’s deficit — against maintaining education quality and teacher morale.
All eyes are now on the FWB parliament as the May 27 vote approaches, with the question of whether last-minute concessions could avert the strike or soften the decree’s impact remaining open. The coming days will determine whether Belgium’s French Community faces an extended education crisis or a negotiated path forward.