Opposition and employers weigh in on government plans

The policies announced by the new federal government have come under fire from trade unions and opposition parties but have been welcomed by employers. The policies were announced yesterday after the four coalition parties reached agreement on forming a federal government led by French-speaking liberal Charles Michel.

In an interview with VRT radio, Flemish socialist party president Bruno Tobback said that families will foot the bill for measures contained in the coalition agreement. He said that the government’s new tax break – an increase of €250 in the amount that can be claimed for employment-related expenses – was outweighed by increased expenses that families would have to pay.

He also criticised the decision to raise the retirement age to 67. “This will be the first measure we will revoke when the Flemish socialists are back in the government,” he said.

Groen leader Kristof Calvo said that the new government had made choices that were “inequitable and unfair. The negotiators haven’t necessarily made the best choices, but rather choices … that sound good if you are a right-wing conservative politician,” he told VRT.

“A coherent narrative”

The main Belgian unions also voiced strong opposition to the new direction of government policy. The raising of the pension age would deprive young people of jobs and prevent the creation of new jobs, said Chris Reniers (pictured) of the ACOD union. It would also unfairly penalise workers who were engaged in heavy manual work, he added.

Reniers also said that the new government was introducing policies that favoured the rich. “The federal government is Robin Hood in reverse,” he said. “They are robbing the poor and giving to the rich.”

But the Belgian employers’ federation VBO warmly welcomed the new policies announced by the government. “They contain all the elements needed to increase growth and create jobs,” said Pieter Timmermans of the VBO. “The agreement provides a coherent narrative that will strengthen our competitive position,” he added.

Part of the employers’ approval of the government agreement stems from the skipping of salary indexation in 2015. The usual cost-of-living pay rises for all workers will be scrapped for one year only. This regulation will also save the regional governments hundreds of millions next year as they will not have to automatically give pay rises to civil servants.