Strike stats out yesterday showing dramatic fall in strike levels for Jan 26 (compared to Nov & Dec 25) so much more like most of 2024 and 2025: 31,000 days not worked in 62 strikes by 6,000 workers.

As of this morning, nearly 4,000 workers are on strike at one of the largest beef plants in the US. Biggest meatpacking strike in decades.

49 miljard euro begrotingstekort. De laatste vooruitzichten van het Planbureau zijn duidelijk: het Belgische begrotingstekort loopt op van 4,4% bij het aantreden van de regering-De Wever tot liefst 6,3% - of bijna 49 miljard euro. Een regering die de begroting op orde zet?

✊ Tomorrow, workers and their trade unions in Belgium take to the streets for what is set to be a historic mobilisation. The ETUC stands in full solidarity in mobilising for fair pensions, secure jobs, and strong public services.

'Over welvaart’ van Bart De Wever is geen open intellectueel essay, maar moet de systemische ingreep van Arizona legitimeren. Marc Reynebeau, redacteur bij De Standaard lees het volledige artikel op:

Het huidig conflict tussen ABVV en Vooruit over de pensioenen is geen misverstand, maar een fundamenteel en historisch meningsverschil. Lees de analyse van Jef Maes hier 👇 (www.sampol.be/2026/03/soci...)

Jordy lost het wel op! ‘Arizona is geen rechtse regering zoals de andere’ www.knack.be/nieuws/arizo...

In Spain, Amazon Workers Win with Quick-Hit Walkouts, see socialistproject.ca/2026/03/spai...

Modeling the Impact of Sectoral Bargaining for U.S. Workers www.americanprogress.org/article/mode...

Decennialang was België de uitzondering op de dalende syndicalisatiegraad, maar nu niet meer. Welke innovaties kunnen vakbonden uit de neerwaartse spiraal trekken? (www.sampol.be/2025/12/hoe-...)

Grèves et conflictualité sociale en 2024 www.crisp.be/librairie/ca...

New York City nurses get a deal, end strike, ratify contract. “The largest nurses strike in New York City history ended this weekend when the last holdouts in the 41-day labor action overwhelmingly voted to ratify a contract and agreed to return to work, officials said." abcnews.com/US/largest-n...

De prehistorische loonhandicap is irrelevant voor de economie van vandaag. www.demorgen.be/meningen/abv...

The Institute for Protest and Social Movement Research warmly invites submissions for its colloquium series “Politics from Below”! 📩 If you are interested, please send a short description of your contribution to [email protected] by 18 March 2026.

Van wie is de uitspraak “Sommige ouders geven het kindergeld uit aan drank en gokmachines”? A. De Wever. B. Bouchez. C. Rousseau. Twijfel? Snap ik, want er is geen enkel verschil meer tussen N-VA, MR of Vooruit in de manier waarop over kwetsbare mensen wordt gepraat. www.demorgen.be/meningen/in-...

US: Workers’ resolve drives increase in unionization in 2025 www.epi.org/publication/...

📣 The Labor Action Tracker 2025 Annual Report is officially here, courtesy of ILRLaborAction, CornellILR, and LER_Illinois! Check out the link below for the full report, or take a look at the overview in the following thread! www.ilr.cornell.edu/faculty-and-...

Socialist Co-Ops Against Silicon Valley Empires jacobin.com/2026/02/soci... via @jacobinmagazin.bsky.social

New article: Diffusing innovations for revitalisation: Conditions and mechanisms across western European and CEE trade unions

" waar Vooruit in 2019 slechts 10,4% van de arbeidersklasse kan bekoren, scoort PS – dat het klassenbewustzijn nog regelmatig aanwakkert – in Franstalig België er nog steeds 48,3%." via @sampolmaandblad.bsky.social www.sampol.be/2026/02/waar...

📘 New publication on SAGE In a new article published in the European Journal of Industrial Relations, @kurtvandaele.bsky.social uses the country chapters from the ETUI book 'When trade unions learn to innovate' as cases for QCA, interpreting the results through a critical realist approach.

👉 Read the article: buff.ly/UzncXN9 📖 Explore the ETUI book for detailed case studies: etui.org/4Jk

New article: Diffusing innovations for revitalisation: Conditions and mechanisms across western European and CEE trade unions

📣Hello Bluesky! 👋 Me (Holly Smith, new Social Media Editor), @ryanlamare.bsky.social (Editor-In-Chief), & the rest of the #BJIR board are delighted to launch our new socials today! Join us here for all things #industrialrelations - related (is that a hashtag?)

'The Oxford Handbook of Belgian Politics' is published. Five parts, 41 chapters. Congratulations to the editors: Min Reuchamps Marleen Brans Petra Meier Emilie van Haute. Chapter 20 in Part III is on 'Trade Unions in Belgium’, written with Jean Faniel ToC here: lnkd.in/eA2RvtmU

I'm happy to share this article, which is now out in open access in the British Journal of Industrial Relations, and seeks to contribute to the debate on neoliberalisation & europeanisation of industrial relations onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Als het management mag beslissen welke actie redelijk is, dan kan het elke #staking verbieden www.standaard.be/opinies/als-... via @standaard.be

NEW PAPER ALERT! My paper, with @bjornhoyland.bsky.social , on how “policy loss” shapes support for the EU has just been published in @cpsjournal.bsky.social. Check it out! 1/

❗#JobAlert: upcoming deadline The ETUI is looking for a Database Administrator to play a central role in managing the Institute’s #data-related activities. Don't miss the opportunity to be part of a dynamic research environment! 🔗 Apply by 31 January: etui.org/4Z5 @andrewwatteu.bsky.social

Jef Maes heeft overschot van gelijk. "Heel het sociale discours van De Gucht klinkt origineel en (..) eenvoudig. Maar de facto is het niets anders dan (..) de liberale recepten van de negentiende eeuw, waarbij de overheid niets mocht doen op sociaal vlak." www.demorgen.be/meningen/ter...

BREAKING: Thousands of nurses go on strike at several major New York City hospitals after weekend negotiations over contract disputes fail.

Contrary to death-of-class perspectives, class identities are as relevant socially today as they were 50-70 years ago.

Very happy to see this out in CPS! We study class identities and their social and political relevance over several decades in Britain, Denmark, Norway, and the US. A small thread: journals.sagepub.com/eprint/SIRW4...

Congratulations to the editors. Chapter 35 in Section Six is on the ‘Unionisation of Digital Labour’

A Dutch worker went viral after explaining to their American boss that they have a life outside work.

Don't let his current wealth or the promised trillion fool you. Elon's year was marked by disastrous failures. #TeslaTakedown www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

In 2025, this administration launched the biggest attack on unions in our history. We fought back and we’re not stopping now.

🔍 A new ETUI policy brief, co-authored by Ioannis Katsaroumpas, ETUI senior researcher, compares protections from detriments short of dismissal across 9 European countries, and shows how the UK risks remaining at the restrictive end, even after the Employment Rights Act. Read it here🔗 etui.org/4ZS

Open brief van BTB Voorzitter Frank Moreels - Flexi-jobs zijn geen hefboom, maar een systeem dat vaste jobs doelbewust ondergraaft. www.demorgen.be/meningen/fl...

'When trade unions learn to innovate: case study evidence from across Europe' 🔍 This chapter by Christian Lyhne Ibsen, University of Copenhagen, analyses and discusses two innovative organising cases in 3F (the General Workers’ Union), the largest trade union in Denmark. 📕 etui.org/Z9S

This is a great piece on Trump's near-destruction of the National Labor Relations Board. (And I'm betting they don't let the Acting GC go on-the-record about anything after his performance here. Kudos to @msainato.bsky.social for a very effective interview.) www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

'When trade unions learn to innovate: case study evidence from across Europe' 🔍 This chapter analyses two cases of policy innovation involving novel types of union-building projects within the General Confederation of Labour. 📕 Download or order a copy of the book 🔗 etui.org/Z9S

Boeiend stuk van Luc Cortebeeck over het sociaal overleg. Een beetje historiek is altijd goed om het heden mee te verklaren en de toekomst -met sociaal overleg- vorm te geven. www.demorgen.be/meningen/luc...

Lees de meer gedetailleerde studie hier: www.researchgate.net/publication/...

We need more Young Workers to become union reps! Great blog by @tuc.org.uk featuring the voices of Young Workers: www.tuc.org.uk/blogs/if-wer...

🗣️ ETUC General Secretary, Esther Lynch, stressed how renewal is also about narrative. It’s about crafting a modern, unifying story of working people. "The fundamental building block towards trade union renewal is to build a unified story of working people in which everyone stands up for one other."

How can trade unions innovate & stay strong in a changing world? 📚 Last week's launch of two ETUI publications, 'Experimenting for Union Renewal: Challenges, Illustrations, and Lessons' & 'When Trade Unions Learn to Innovate', offered insights into how unions can adapt in an evolving world of work.

How can trade unions boost their membership numbers again? 🗞️ Read a new article by @kurtvandaele.bsky.social in @sampolmaandblad.bsky.social, analysing what innovations Belgian unions can introduce to reverse the downward trend & strengthen their role in a changing world of work. 🔍 buff.ly/tZPEPdQ

Participants highlighted how innovation isn't an isolated act but a strategic mindset: a way of designing, implementing, and scaling ideas that respond to today’s realities. 🤝