Protest action over restructuring of beer company

The international brewery, InBev, faces mounting union protest against its restructuring plans in Belgium. Unions condemn the company’s continuous series of downsizing projects and the lack of information on the long-term plans for the brewing multinational. As part of their protest, the unions have used innovative campaigning methods.

Restructuring operations

Following the announcement in early 2005 of a range of restructuring plans, InBev, the world’s largest beer distillery (by volume) has to date already carried out several of them. The outsourcing of subdivisions of the information technology (IT) department was followed by a reorganisation at company headquarters in Belgium. In December 2005, InBev announced its plan to close the Bellevue brewery in Brussels and the brewery in the small village of Hoegaarden, where the white beer of the same name is produced. More recently, the company announced a cost-cutting initiative: the merging of some of its European business support services and subsequent transfer of operations to the Czech Republic and Hungary.

To date, restructuring at InBev has resulted in the loss of 441 jobs in Belgium alone. About 90 of those who lost their jobs have been offered another position.

Union protest action

Since January 2006, unions have called on InBev management to disclose critical information on individual plant performance and on the overall company strategy for the next three years, and to negotiate a common framework of minimum guarantees on future restructuring for all of InBev’s European workers. However, an official arbitration meeting held at the beginning of March was not successful. The unions are still proposing alternatives for the closure of the brewery, especially in the Hoegaarden case, and have been unwilling to negotiate a welfare plan and redundancy compensation.

As a result, on 28 March 2006, some 2,500 InBev workers from all European subsidiaries marched through Leuven, site of the company’s headquarters in Belgium. The demonstration was followed by a one-day strike at the four InBev plants in Belgium. A few days earlier, up to 1,500 people demonstrated against the company’s plans in Jupille, in the Liège region and the site of another important InBev plant. In December 2005, more than 2,000 local residents and politicians joined InBev workers in a mass demonstration against the closure of the Hoegaarden plant.

Besides these traditional strike and protest methods, the trade unions have also tried to gather broad public support for their actions. First, they launched a website (www.mijnvoorstel.be) where people could post their ideas on how to maintain the brewing activities in Belgium. Second, they have lobbied for the official protection of the local beer brand names, especially the name ‘Hoegaarden’, since it is not only the name of a well-known beer, but also the name of the town where the beer was produced. Third, they have been gathering political support from various quarters: success in this area came from the highest level with the Belgian Prime Minister Verhofstadt writing a letter to his predecessor, Jean-Luc Dehaene, who has a seat on InBev’s board of directors, urging him to raises the union concerns at a board meeting.

Commentary

Despite the cost-cutting measures initiated by InBev, dismissals and plant closures have continued to take place at a time when the company increased its turnover by 15.3% and made more than €1 billion in profits. Furthermore, three top managers stepped down last year at a total cost of €31 million to the company. Comparing these financial results with the proposed job cuts aimed at reducing costs further has certainly galvanised the trade union protests. After a month of heightened tension and demonstrations, InBev is prepared to discuss its future plans with the unions.

Guy Van Gyes, Higher Institute for Labour Studies (HIVA), Catholic University of Leuven