Good afternoon! Katie Westwood back in the saddle again.
Our lead story today looks at the plight of a group of people – mostly women – who play an important role in keeping the city ticking, but are often overlooked and undervalued by society. Yesterday, the cleaners of Brussels were out on the streets protesting funding reforms that could lead to lay-offs in their sector.
For domestic work, Belgium has an idiosyncratic system which means cleaners are paid through service vouchers, which are partly publicly subsidised. Companies have long been able to receive additional funds for social employment integration, on the grounds that they employ disadvantaged workers or people with lower skill sets. From next year, though, this funding will be removed, potentially leading to redundancies.
Women, who make up a significant proportion of jobs in the “voucher sector”, will be particularly affected by the changes. Our Health and Social Affairs reporter Rita Alves spoke to cleaners at yesterday’s protest, and their fury was palpable. “We want to work,” one woman told her. “People here work to earn a living and contribute to Belgium’s economy…so why scrap this?”
Staying with the sisterhood, Features Editor and part-time dating correspondent Isabella Vivian spoke to a woman who is also angry, but for very different reasons. She shelled out the princely sum of €49 for a pretty awful-sounding speed dating event in Brussels, where only four men turned up for eight women participants – a pitiful ratio.
As someone who has never actively dated (I just sort of end up in long-term relationships) I used to think speed dating sounded quite fun. Isabella’s column has rather put me off, but it also made me think we should host our very own speed dating event at The Brussels Times (sample icebreaker: are you into any unusual sexual practices and where do you stand on Brussels bin collections?). Watch this space.
Elsewhere, Dennis Abbott, our correspondent in Cannes, looks at the Belgian film industry, which is in rude health at present, with plaudits flying in for Belgian film makers from across the globe. As Dennis reports, though, there is frustration in the sector that Belgians aren’t interested in watching locally-produced films.
Finally, don’t forget to check out Aoife White’s weekly roundup of things to do with your kids in Brussels this weekend. It’s a real corker of a weekend, events wise, with a medieval fair at Cinquantenaire and a Japanese festival in the city centre.
If you have any comments, tips or suggestions to improve our coverage, please feel free to drop me an email at k.westwood@brusselstimes.com.
Bye for now!
Katie
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1. ‘Why scrap this? We want to work’: The Brussels cleaners under threat from new funding reforms
Companies in the domestic services sector have long been able to receive funding for social employment integration, but as of next year this will change – prompting fears of lay-offs. Read more.
2. ‘I paid €49 for speed dating in Brussels, and it was disastrous’
One Brussels resident recounts her "disastrous" experience of speed dating in the city – which has put her off from ever going again. Read more.
3. Brussels for kids: What to do with your family this weekend – 23 to 24 May
From medieval fairs to story-telling sessions, there are lots of great activities for kids of all ages in Brussels this weekend. Read more.
4. Belgian woman returns from Syria but gets heavy sentence for ties to IS
A Brussels woman who spent a decade in IS-controlled Syria returned to Belgium, only to receive a harsher-than-expected prison sentence. Read more.
5. Plaudits for Belgian films at Cannes – but Belgian audiences still flock to see foreign movies
Belgium often enjoys a strong profile abroad thanks to home-grown award-winning film-makers, but it seems they are appreciated less by audiences in their own country than those elsewhere. Read more.
6. Man on the run after the shooting of three bystanders as they left a cafe in Forest
Several individuals, armed with an Uzi submachine gun and a Kalashnikov automatic rifle, opened fire in a residential square in Forest in 2024. Read more.
7. ‘Toxic climate’ and claims of harassment at KU Leuven laboratory
A report from an external prevention service alleged a harmful and abusive work environment. Read more.
