The management of bus manufacturer Van Hool is inviting trade unions to participate in the upcoming information and consultation rounds it will be organising after it announced 1,100 job losses at the company. "It is clear that we face major and difficult challenges and negotiations," Kim Samison of the Christian ACV union said.
According to the ACV, the attention politicians paid to the Flemish manufacturing industry during the pandemic faded away as quickly as it had arrived. "When it emerged that the tender for 92 electric buses as part of a larger framework agreement to supply 500 buses had been awarded to a Chinese player, trade union anger had been stoked."
The unions are particularly bitter because their competitor is subsidised by the Chinese government. "In addition, this tender complicates technological development opportunities for our own manufacturing industry vis-a-vis Asian players. In recent months a lot of experts raised an eyebrow when they realised the market distortion resulting from this procurement policy."