Belgium: social partners agree on recommendations for exiting lockdown conditions

On 22 April, the social partners that met as part of the Group of Ten (one of Belgium’s social consultation forums) agreed on the framework that will govern the relaunch of business in non-essential sectors, which is set for yet to be announced a date but that should be known before 26 April. This framework is the one drawn up by the tripartite High Council for Prevention and Protection at Work, in conjunction with the Economic Risk Management Group (a Government Covid-19 management task force that includes the social partners), and the Minister for Employment, Nathalie Muylle. This guide sets out best practice for ensuring safe workplaces and contains concrete preventive measures as regards safety, health, and hygiene instructions. It is intended to serve as a basis upon which the sector joint committees (where branch agreements are negotiated) can draw when formulating their own specifically tailored sector protocols.
Enjoy this article for free while you’re in your trial period
You have access to our content for 1 month.

The guide underlines, ‘Social collaboration and dialogue at all levels plays a central and crucial role here. Existing consultation bodies within companies, including the Committee for Prevention and Protection at Work, the trade union delegation, and the workers themselves (lest there be no trade union delegation) should be involved in choosing and implementing these measures. Furthermore, the services of internally and externally available expertise should be called upon, such as that of a pr

Do you have information to share with us?
What you absolutely must read this week
The essential content of the week selected by the editorial team.
See all
EU: insurance sector social partners commit to addressing violence and harassment at work
The news. The trade union UNI Europa Finance and the employers’ federations Insurance Europe, Amice and Bipar signed an addendum to their 2022 joint declaration on diversity and inclusion on...
18 September 2026
Juliette Baudry (Boiron): “An intergenerational mechanism to better accommodate different life stages”
Since 1 September 2026, employees of the pharmaceutical group Boiron (1,700 employees in France) have benefited from a “key life moments account”. Resulting from an agreement signed last February...
18 September 2026
France: final document on the work of the Labour, Employment and Pensions Conference
After six months of discussions between French social partners, the guarantors of the Labour, Employment and Pensions Conference submitted the conclusions of the discussions to the Prime Minister...
17 September 2026
EU: Commission proposes a list of worker-related criteria for public procurement
The news. On 9 September, the European Commission published a proposal for a regulation aimed at unifying European public procurement law, which accounts for 15% of European GDP. It is notably set...
17 September 2026
Most viewed articles of the month on mind HR
What readers clicked on the most last month.
What readers clicked on the most last month.
1
Italy: artificial Intelligence on the menu of Barilla’s new company agreement
Prior consultation with trade unions on innovations related to artificial intelligence, strengthened training, and progress on parenthood: these are the main new features of the agreement signed...
2 September 2026
2
Italy: Enel signs agreement to manage the effects of AI on work
An agreement signed at the end of July by the electricity company Enel (31,000 employees) and the unions Filctem-Cgil, Flaei-Cisl, and Uiltec is pioneering in the Italian energy sector. It aims to...
7 September 2026
3
France: final document on the work of the Labour, Employment and Pensions Conference
After six months of discussions between French social partners, the guarantors of the Labour, Employment and Pensions Conference submitted the conclusions of the discussions to the Prime Minister...
17 September 2026
4
Germany: a high-tension start to the social and political year
The German government must finalize its major reforms (pension funding, corporate competitiveness, and labor law) while the chancellor’s popularity hits an all-time low and three regional...
5
Sweden: IF Metall union forced to end industrial dispute with Tesla
The news. After three years of conflict, the Swedish union IF Metall announced it would suspend its strike actions against Tesla starting Wednesday, August 19, after the American automaker...
6
United Kingdom: trade unions can now use electronic and workplace voting
The news. The provisions of the UK Employment Rights Act 2025 authorising electronic and workplace voting for trade union ballots came into force on Tuesday, 25 August. They apply to trade union...