The Liberal minister dismissed claims made by some unions that they are enslavers and underemployers. He argued that this is not the case at all. The social conflict at Delhaize arose following the company announced its intentions to transfer its directly managed stores to a franchise status. The transfer includes 128 out of 764 brands, and this move has highlighted the need for labor market reform. The tension at Delhaize’s new works council has escalated, and security officers and police are on site. The cost of operating a store on Sunday is high for integrated stores, which explains the company’s push for smaller franchise structures with more flexible working conditions. The minister believes that Belgium has far too much rigidity, which creates difficulties for employees to manage a company in a modern way. However, the minister also stated that workers are willing to work on Sundays, and the caricature should stop.
“I hear some unions saying they are slavers, underemployers. It’s scandalous, that’s not the case at all,” argued the Liberal minister.
The social conflict at Delhaize, a historic Belgian brand absorbed a few years ago by the Dutch company Ahold (Albert Heijn, bol.com…), followed the company’s announcement, on March 7, that it intends to transfer all the stores that it still manages directly, ie 128 brands (out of 764) to franchise status. For the Minister of the Independents, this event above all demonstrates the importance of “having a form of labor market reform”.
New works council under high tension at Delhaize: security officers and police are on site
The cost, for the supermarket chain, of operating a shop on a Sunday, for example, would be too high in integrated stores, which would partly explain the push towards smaller franchise structures where working conditions are more flexible. , he explains in essence. “In Belgium we have far too much rigidity, far too much difficulty for an employer to be able to manage a company in a modern way”. However, in the example of Sunday opening, “workers are ready to work on Sunday, we must stop caricaturing”, launches David Clarinval.
The Delhaize labor conflict has shed light on the ongoing debate regarding labor market reform in Belgium. While the company’s decision to transfer stores to franchise status has sparked tensions among workers and management, it has also sparked a larger conversation regarding the need for flexibility in the Belgian job market. Some argue that current labor laws are too rigid, making it difficult for employers to run companies in a modern way. Others argue that workers’ rights must be protected, and that companies should not be allowed to exploit employees in the name of flexibility. Whatever the outcome of this conflict, it is clear that the debate over labor reform in Belgium is far from over.
