We sighed a collective sigh of relief when the Belgian government finally reached the budget agreement last week. The negotiations had been really difficult, which is not surprising considering the challenges the government faces: 8 billion had to be found somewhere to keep Belgium’s debt at an acceptable level (acceptable as in not driving us Belgians straight to bankruptcy).
The relief was short-lived however, as details of some of the budgetary measures were released. One measure that has Belgian employers scratching their heads is the government’s decision that automatic wage indexation will not be fully implemented on two occasions during this legislative period.
Belgium indexes wages to inflation as part of its wage setting framework, on the basis of indexation mechanisms included in collective labour agreements that vary from sector to sector. This has created challenges in recent years, as high inflation levels have led to higher wages and this has been affecting Belgium’s international competitiveness.
January is traditionally the time when there are wage increases in a lot of sectors due to the automatic link to the index. The most notable sector in this regard is Joint Committee 200, which represents the largest number of employees in the country. However, under the new budget agreement, on both 1 January 2026 and 1 January 2028, only wages up to 4,000 will be indexed (the salary above 4,000 will not be increased). Companies will have to transfer half the...
[OSEN=Kim Nayeon Reporter] Ms. A, who is under suspicion of illegal medical practices due to the 'injection aunt' controversy involving broadcaster Park Na-rae, expressed her grievance. On the 24t...