Night work will be possible in every company from 1 June 2026

From 1 June 2026, your company can introduce night work. The current ban will be lifted, but you must still follow a specific procedure to introduce night work. Here you can read exactly what changes.

This AI-generated translation may contain errors and should not be considerd legal advice. For accurate info, refer to the Dutch or French version or consult your Securex Legal Advisor.

Night work: from a principle prohibition to a principle authorisation

Your employees perform night work when they work between 8:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
Although night work is generally prohibited today, the legislator allows various exceptions, enabling certain sectors to organise it nonetheless. Employees who work at night are entitled to a night premium on top of their regular pay.

Through a new legislative initiative implementing the coalition agreement, night work is now principally permitted. The government aims to strengthen the competitive position of our companies compared to neighbouring countries. You must, however, follow the specific procedure described below to implement this. This is done in consultation with your employees and their representatives.

Note that the abolition of the prohibition on night work does not change the maximum working hours of 9 hours per day and 40 hours per week.

Night work premium

Not all night work automatically entitles employees to a premium. Agreements may have been made at company or sector level, but there may also be no premium due.

There is, however, a minimum night premium agreed for work arrangements with night performances (when work is usually performed between midnight and 5 a.m.). From 1 January 2026, this amounts to 1.51 euros per hour (1.82 euros per hour for employees aged at least 50 years).

These premiums remain unchanged, even after the legislative amendment.

Special regime: night work in the distribution and related sectors

General

If your company is active in the distribution sector (including electronic commerce), you can now make use of a specific regime for night work.

The advantage of this regime is that for new employees you only have to pay a night premium for work performed between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. The premium amount itself does not change.

Note: this regime applies only in certain sectors, for specific activities within your company, and exclusively for new employees.
Below we further explain these three conditions.

Which sectors? Distribution and related sectors including electronic commerce

This concerns, besides Bpost, private sector companies belonging to one of the following (sub) joint committees:

The supplementary joint committee for workers no. 100
The joint committee for the trade in foodstuffs no. 119
The joint subcommittee for the timber trade no. 125.03
The joint committee for the trade in fuels no. 127
The joint subcommittee for road transport and logistics on behalf of third parties no. 140.03
The joint subcommittee for electricians' installation and distribution no. 149.01
The joint subcommittee for the metal trade no. 149.04
The supplementary joint committee for white-collar workers no. 200
The joint committee for independent retail trade no. 201
The joint committee for white-collar workers in retail food trade no. 202
The joint subcommittee for medium-sized food companies no. 202.01
The joint committee for white-collar workers in international trade, transport and logistics no. 226
The joint committee for large retail businesses no. 311
The joint committee for department stores no. 312;

Only for specific activities

Furthermore, it is not enough to belong to one of the above-mentioned joint committees. Your company must also perform one of the following activities:

Retail: this usually means producing or purchasing and reselling goods under your own name and on your own account to consumers, to private individuals, provided that this is wholly or partly done online. A secured online payment system or prior payment is, however, not necessary.
Newspaper shops, night shops and shops in petrol stations without requiring online sales.
Wholesale: this means the purchase and sale of goods, either to traders who will resell the goods in turn, or to professional users, being natural or legal persons who will use these goods in the context of their profession, for the exercise of their activity.
Logistic activities on behalf of third parties: being the receipt, storage, weighing, packaging, labelling, order preparation, stock management or shipment of raw materials, goods or products in the various stages of their economic cycle, without producing new semi-finished or finished raw materials, goods or products.
Electronic commerce: the trade belonging to retail and wholesale as described above and conducted via the internet.

Only for new employees

For employees starting from 1 June 2026, you may limit the night premium to the hours between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.

Employees who were already employed before 1 June 2026 (one worked day between 1 June 2025 and 31 May 2026 suffices) retain their right to the night premium from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. This remains so, even if they only switch to a night shift from 1 June onwards. Temporary employees count as regular employees.

If you want to limit the premium for these existing employees to 11:00 p.m.–6:00 a.m., this is only possible in an exceptional situation:

You must be able to demonstrate economic reasons (e.g. financial difficulties),
A collective agreement must be concluded with your employees,
And the joint committee must be consulted for advice beforehand.

How do I implement night work from now on?

Sectors other than distribution

From the entry into force of the new regulation, you can implement night work in two ways:

By amending the labour regulation according to the ordinary amendment procedure.
There is no longer any difference between companies with or without a trade union delegation.
By a company collective labour agreement (CLA), concluded with all trade unions represented in the company.

Simplified procedure for amending the labour regulation

In some cases, the procedure to amend the labour regulation for the introduction of night work is simplified.
When employer and employees do not reach an agreement, the social inspection can verify during the conciliation procedure whether the proposed work arrangement is lawful (taking into account all regulatory and conventional rules, especially regarding working hours and the correct amendment procedure).

If the social inspection declares the arrangement lawful, the amendment of the labour regulation automatically takes effect on the eighth day after notification to the employer and, if applicable, the chairman of the Company Council.

When does the simplification apply?

Work arrangement without night performances
(no work between midnight and 5:00 a.m.)
→ simplified procedure possible.
Work arrangement with night performances
(usually work between midnight and 5:00 a.m.)
→ no simplification: amendment via ordinary procedure or via CLA with all trade unions.

Night work: work arrangement with night performances in the distribution sector, related sectors and electronic commerce

In these sectors, you can introduce the new work arrangement by amending the labour regulation or by an ordinary company CLA, signed by one representative trade union. In case of an amendment to the labour regulation, the previously described simplified procedure also applies here, whereby the social inspection can confirm the lawfulness of the arrangement.

If you choose a company CLA, the labour regulation automatically adapts as soon as the CLA is filed with the registry of the FPS ELSD.

Logistic and support services related to electronic commerce

The draft law explicitly provides that if these services do not fall under the definition of distribution and related sectors, the existing regulations remain. This means that here, as before, night work can be introduced (whether or not in a work arrangement with night performances between midnight and 5 a.m.) by concluding an ordinary CLA, concluded with one representative trade union.

Example: A contact centre in JC 200 providing helpdesk support to webshops (without own retail or wholesale and without logistics for third parties) does not fall under the definition ‘distribution and related sectors’. For such a company, the general regulation applies: night work (e.g. between midnight and 5 a.m.) can be introduced via an ordinary company CLA with one representative trade union.

What does Securex do for you?

We closely monitor the situation and keep you informed via Lex4You. If you wish to introduce night work in the near future, please contact us via myHR@securex.be