On May 12, we are heading to Brussels with ACOD, together with the entire ABVV and the GVF.
Because today, social dismantling does not stop at the borders of a single sector, a single status, or a single professional group. What employees are feeling today in their wallets and their future prospects also fully affects public service personnel.
Purchasing power is under severe pressure. Exploding energy prices are eating away at wages and benefits, while uncertainty is increasing. That is why, together with the ABVV, we are defending the retention of full automatic wage indexation. This mechanism is not a luxury, but a necessary protection against poverty and loss of income. Anyone who touches it undermines the foundation of social justice.
Pension policy also threatens to once again pass the bill on to the workers. After an often arduous and long career, everyone is entitled to a dignified pension. The planned phase-out measures and the pension malus are unacceptable. Workers have contributed more than enough – it is time for that to be respected.
Furthermore, the so-called Arizona reforms primarily affect those who work and depend on labor. Savings are being made where it hurts, while other revenues remain untouched. ACOD and ABVV demand that the taboo finally be broken: get the money where it is and introduce a real, fair wealth tax.
The strongest shoulders must bear their fair share!
For ACOD, this is inextricably linked to the defense of strong public services. Years of underfunding, staff shortages, and austerity measures undermine not only our working conditions but also the quality and safety of service provision for everyone.
Investing in public services is investing in society!
That is why we are here on May 12. For our wages, our pensions, and our labor conditions. For purchasing power, solidarity, and justice. And for public services that can continue to fulfill their role. Silence is no longer an option.
Together, we make it clear that enough is enough!
Why are we taking to the streets?
On May 12, we are taking to the streets for:
- our pensions
- our wages
- our labor conditions
- our index
- fair taxation
- strong public services
because investing in public services means investing in sound service provision for and by all of us!
Strike Notice
A strike notice was filed for this day to give all UGent staff members the opportunity to participate in this national demonstration.
Did you – as an ACOD member – participate in this action, and did UGent withhold your salary for this day? If so, please send us your payslip showing this deduction via email to ACOD@UGent.be so that we can take the necessary steps regarding the payment of strike compensation.
Practical Information
- National demonstration on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in Brussels
- We are gathering from 9:45 AM on at the Finance Tower (FINTO), Kruidtuinlaan 50, 1000 Brussels (get off the train at Brussels Central Station, after which it is still approximately 1 km on foot)
- The demonstration itself starts at 11:00 AM and will proceed towards Brussels South Station.
Train Transport
You must register in advance for this. You can do so until Monday, May 11, 2026, at 10:00 AM.
How do you do this?
- Click on this link (in Dutch) and then on ‘Een plek reserveren’.
- Enter your name, national registry number, and email address.
- Indicate whether you want a train ticket and enter the station from which you are departing.
Please note regarding the form fields for strike pay: to receive strike pay as an ACOD member, you must email us your payslip for the month of May—on which the salary for the strike day was withheld—to ACOD@UGent.be.
After registration, you will receive an email with a document. Keep this safe. It contains a QR code that will be scanned by our staff at the stations or in Brussels to confirm your presence. You can have your QR code scanned, for example, by the ACOD secretaries of East Flanders, or at the ABVV East Flanders music cart. Only members who are scanned as present will receive the lunch allowance (10 euros) for the action.
Your train ticket will be automatically added to your e-ID card. So be sure to bring your e-ID card with you on May 12 as well.
Not registered?
Then you can still buy your train ticket yourself. As an ACOD member, you may send us a scan of your train ticket afterwards, along with your name and national register number, to ACOD@UGent.be.
Registered, but unable to attend after all?
Please inform bert.piessens@abvv.be no later than May 11 at 10:00 AM. This way, we can cancel your train ticket and avoid buying unnecessary tickets.
Traveling together by train
We will meet the ACOD UGent comrades departing from Ghent at 8:30 AM at Ghent Sint-Pieters station. We will take the 8:55 AM train (towards Leuven) to Brussels Central.
Please let us know at ACOD@UGent.be if you are also departing from Ghent, so that we can travel together as one delegation.
ACOD UGent calls upon all UGent staff to continue standing up with us for strong public services and social justice!