Public Sector โคWage Talks Set โto Begin: Union Demands 7% increase โfor 1.2 โMillion Workers
Berlin – Collective bargaining for approximately 1.2 million public sector employees acrossโ Germany’s federal states is scheduled toโข begin โDecember 3rd, wiht the Verdi union presenting a firm set of demands. The union is seeking a โข7% wage increase, alongsideโค aโ minimum monthlyโค increase of 300 euros, for workers inโข state โขemployment.
Verdi โand the German Civil Service Association (dbb) announced โคtheir collective bargaining committees โreached this decision on Monday.”The employees want a clear signal from employers that their services will be better rewarded in the future,” stated Verdi boss Frank โWerneke.
Negotiationsโฃ areโ expected to continue into โขmid-January, with a third round โplanned for February 11-13th. Reaching an agreement โbefore the third round is considered unlikely.
The proposed collective agreement would have a termโข of twelve months. in April 2023, a separate agreement was โคreached for federal and local government โemployees,โ outlining a two-stage wage increase โof 5.8%โ over aโค 27-month period ending in Marchโข 2027.
Beyondโ the general wage increase, Verdiโค is also pushing for a 200โฃ euro monthly increase for junior employees, coupled โwith a requirement for permanent employment following prosperous training. โAdditionally, theโฃ union is demanding a 20 percentage point โฃincrease to all time surcharges,โ such as those for night shifts.
The demands come as the public โขsectorโค faces a significant staffing shortage, estimated at aroundโ 600,000 positions. “Inโฃ order not to fall further and โfurther behindโฃ the โขprivateโฃ sector on theโ laborโ market, theโ public service urgently needs to become more attractive and pay better,” said Volker Geyer,โ federal chairman of the dbb. “there is a lack of โstaff at the back and front.” Frank Werneke added thatโ the situation is expected to โworsen.
The โฃnegotiations will cover employees in a wide range of โขstate services, including road โconstruction, the โjudiciary, financial and โtax โคauthorities, daycare centers, schools, universities, clinics, and administrative โขroles.The โoutcome of these talks willโ also impact approximately โข1.3 million civil โservants through the transmission of the results, as well as around one million pensioners.
Source: ntv.de, โคlme/rts
