Status: 06/03/2022 09:58 a.m
The collective bargaining dispute in the building cleaning industry is over: the 700,000 employees will receive higher hourly wages in a first step from October. A second increase will follow in 2024.
The industrial union for construction, agriculture and the environment (IG BAU) and the federal guild association of the building cleaning trade (BIV) agreed on a new collective agreement in the evening. According to information provided by employers, the starting salary in the industry will increase from the current EUR 11.55 to EUR 13.00 on October 1, 2022 and to EUR 13.50 on January 1, 2024.
According to the union, anyone who works in glass and facade cleaning will earn an hourly wage of 16.20 euros from October. On January 1, 2024, this will be increased again by 50 cents. According to the employers, the training allowances will also increase to 900, 1035 and 1200 euros by the end of the term in 2024, depending on the apprenticeship year.
The collective agreement for the industry, in which around 700,000 employees work, has a term of 27 months, both sides said. The building cleaners are the craft industry with the highest employment in Germany.
“Difficult and tough conversations”
“In difficult and tough talks, we managed to achieve a breakthrough,” comments Ulrike Laux, member of the national board of IG BAU. Cleaners continue to receive significantly more than the statutory minimum wage for their important work. “This means that building cleaning remains attractive for urgently needed specialists. At the same time, the increase in wages is far above the inflation rate,” says Laux.
Employers said the wage increases were close to the red amid “extreme economic risks and uncertainties for businesses.” However, they praised the long term of the contract. “All in all, the collective bargaining result is challenging for companies, but a sensible compromise in terms of predictability and recruitment,” emphasizes the chairman of the BIV collective bargaining committee, Christian Kloevekorn.
Minimum wage should be increased
Meanwhile, the traffic light coalition in the Bundestag wants to decide today on the promised increase in the minimum wage to 12 euros. A draft law by Minister of Labor Hubertus Heil is before the MPs. The increase in the lower wage limit is planned for October 1st. The draft law is based on around 6.2 million employees with an hourly wage of less than 12 euros.