Employees at BNP Paribas Fortis bank are striking across the country on Thursday.
The unions are protesting the bank's plan to outsource the staffing and activities from its 'Client Service Centre' and to transfer them to the Belgian branch of the company Accenture. This move would affect almost 600 full-time employees.
The unions are particularly angered by the management's refusal to make concessions.
Unions ACV Puls-CNE, BBTK-Setca, and ACLVB-CGSLB have called on all bank employees to join the strike. They stress that the issue impacts not just the affected staff but everyone's job security. "If we allow this, what will the next step be? Who will be the next to be outsourced?" they stressed.
Protests are taking place on Thursday at the bank's headquarters on Warandeberg in Brussels, as well as at regional offices in Antwerp, Ghent, Leuven, Liège, and Charleroi.
It remains uncertain whether bank branches will be closed.
