Social elections in Belgium: preparing for 2028

2028 Employee representative elections

Every four years, these elections give (certain) employees the opportunity to cast their votes to determine who will represent them in the company’s consultative bodies. Which employees are eligible to vote, which consultative bodies are involved, and who may run for office? All of this depends on the employment threshold during the reference period. The actual election period has not yet been announced by the legislature, but we can assume that, as is customary, it will take place in May.

What are we voting for?

Votes can be cast, on the one hand, for the Committee for Prevention and Protection at Work (CPBW), and on the other hand, for the Works Council. Which body employees can vote for depends, in turn, on the employment threshold within the organization during the reference period.

• A CPBW is established in companies that typically employ an average of 50 employees.

• A works council, on the other hand , is only established in companies that typically employ an average of 100 employees .

The phrase “employ an average of” may seem like a minor detail here, but it is indeed an important factor to take into account. This is where the well-known reference period comes into play. Depending on (and therefore subject to) the publication of the law that definitively sets the election date, the reference period will run

• from October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027, for permanent employees;

• and from April 1, 2027, through June 30, 2027, for temporary workers.

Calculation of average employment

In principle, the calculation of the workforce includes all individuals associated with the company through an employment or apprenticeship contract. It does not matter whether the contract is for a fixed or indefinite term, whether the position is full-time or part-time, or whether the individual is a blue-collar worker, white-collar worker, manager, student, or person in individual vocational training.

Employees who are temporarily absent due to illness, time credit, or parental leave are also included in the count. Excluded from the count are, among others, employees with a temporary replacement contract, self-employed individuals, directors without an employment contract, and employees who have left the company.

Average employment is calculated based on the number of calendar days on which employees were employed during the reference period. For part-time employees, their working hours are taken into account: those who work at least 75% of a full-time schedule are counted in full, while employees below that threshold are counted only as half. The total average employment is then determined by adding up all individual results.

Temporary agency workers can also influence the workforce size. Although they do not have an employment contract with the client company, temporary agency workers are counted according to a specific calculation method. An exception applies to temporary agency workers who are deployed to replace a suspended employee. The average employment figures for employees and temporary agency workers are ultimately combined. If the statutory thresholds are reached as a result, the company must organize employee elections.

Candidates and voters: who can participate?

Employee elections give employees a voice in the company, but there are a few rules to follow. Anyone wishing to run for office must, among other things,

• be employed by the company under an employment or apprenticeship contract,

• have sufficient seniority,

• and belong to the employee category they wish to represent.

Managers and occupational safety and health representatives are not eligible to run for office.

There are also conditions for voting. For example, managers are excluded from voting, and employees must have been employed by the company for a minimum period of time. In certain cases, temporary workers may also cast their vote at the company where they are working.