The Federal Inner Cabinet has reached an agreement that ties up a number of loose ends left from the multi-year budget announced last month. Among the issues that had remained unresolved prior to Thursday night’s agreement were the deployment of military personnel on the streets and measures to address prison overcrowding.
Federal Inner Cabinet reaches agreement on reform of the rules on working at night and new fiscal measures
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The general ban on working between 8 pm and 6 am has been removed. Currently, working between these hours can be introduced as part of a collective labour agreement or if amendments are made to a company’s work regulations. In both cases this requires the agreement of both management and the trade unions.
A specific rule will apply to the distribution and e-commerce sectors, where night work will be defined as work carried out between 11 pm and 6 am.
The Federal Employment Minister David Clarinval (Francophone liberal) says that the new rules will bring Belgium into line with neighbouring countries.
E-commerce
The definition of the distribution sector and related sectors, such as e-commerce, is based on a list of that includes retail (whether fully or partly online), wholesale traders, third-party logistics, e-commerce and the Belgian post office Bpost.
The new rules apply solely to distribution, logistics, and e-commerce, and will not affect sectors where night work already exists, such as healthcare or essential services. In those sectors, the current rules remain unchanged.
Bonuses
Existing bonus for working nights that are set out in collective labour agreements will continue to apply. For staff hired after the new rules come into force a bonus will be paid for work carried out between 11 pm and 6 am.
Employers will of course be permitted to pay new staff the same bonuses that they pay existing staff. It will also be made easier for employers to introduce evening work. The government will carry out an evaluation one year after the new rules come into force.
Additional fiscal and social measures
Several other measures were agreed on during Thursday’s meeting. The maximum annual amount a person can earn from doing a so-called “flexi-job” will be increased. Tax relief on interest payments on loans for second homes, will be abolished. Tax relief on gifts given to charities and other worthy causes will be reduced from 45% to 30%. It was also agreed that spending on health care will increase by 2% above inflation in 2026 and 2027, 2.6% above inflation in 2028 and 3% above inflation in 2029.
Tax relief on alimony payments will be reduced from 70% now to 60% in 2026 and 50% from 2027. The families’ association Gezinsbond says that this could put pressure on families and family courts.
The previous federal government's “pension bonus” system will be abolished at the end of this year and replaced by a new bonus for those that work beyond the statutory retirement age. A malus system whereby those that haven’t worked up until their legal retirement age will receive less than would otherwise have been the case will take effect from 2027.