Since 1893, there have been a number of general strikes in Belgium. Occasioned by the emergence of the

labour movement The labour movement is the collective organisation of working people to further their shared political and economic interests. It consists of the trade union or labour union movement, as well as political parties of labour. It can be considere ...

and

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, general strikes have been an enduring part of Belgian political life. Originally intended to encourage the reform of the franchise, more recent strikes have focused on issues of wages and opposition to government

austerity In economic policy, austerity is a set of Political economy, political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through Government spending, spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three prim ...

. Since 1945,

general strike A general strike is a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large coalitions ...

s have been co-ordinated by the General Federation of Belgian Labour (ABVV-FGTB), a federation of Socialist

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

s, while most before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

were organised by the parliamentary

Belgian Labour Party The Belgian Labour Party (, , BWP; , , POB) was the first major Socialism, socialist party in Belgium. Founded in 1885, the party achieved its first electoral breakthrough in the aftermath of World War I. It was officially disbanded after the Ger ...

(POB-BWP). According to Carl J. Strikwerda, the

Belgian general strike of 1893 The general strike of 1893 (, ) was a major general strike in Belgium in April 1893 called by the Belgian Labour Party (POB–BWP) to pressure the government of Auguste Beernaert to introduce universal manhood suffrage, universal male suffrage in ...

was the first general strike in the

European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD 500), the Middle Ages (AD 500–1500), and the modern era (since AD 1500). The first early Eu ...

Origins

In 1866, the Belgian government revoked the articles of the Le Chapelier Law which had outlawed

trade unions A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

. The first strikes followed soon after. A mining strike occurred in 1868 and textile workers went on strike during the economic depression of the 1870s. In 1885, the

, the country's first socialist parliamentary party, was formed. Despite the rapid growth of the labour movement, during the nineteenth century Belgian workers were known internationally for their low pay and poor working conditions. The first major strike in Belgian history was the Belgian strike of 1886 which, though unorganised, led to the first legislation regarding working conditions.

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De grootste stakingen uit de Belgische geschiedenis
at ''

De Standaard (, ) is a Flemish daily newspaper published in Belgium by Mediahuis (formerly Corelio and VUM). It was traditionally a Christian-Democratic paper, associated with the Christian-Democratic and Flemish Party, and in opposition to the Sociali ...

''
General Strikes and Social Change in Belgium
(1980) by Carl Strikwerda {{DEFAULTSORT:Belgian General Strikes Social history of Belgium Socialism in Belgium Labour in Belgium *

Origins

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