Following the failure of arbitration in the construction industry, the climate between trade unionists and employers continues to deteriorate. IG Bau is currently making final preparations so that the already announced warning strikes can begin. At the same time, statements from representatives of employers’ associations are causing great anger in the union camp. The atmosphere of discussion appears to have been permanently damaged. “The behavior of the employers is pathetic,” said Carsten Burckhardt, negotiator for IG Bau South German newspaper.
Last Friday, the employers’ associations ZDB and HDB finally rejected the arbitrator’s decision in the construction industry. The former President of the Federal Social Court, Rainer Schlegel, had suggested that employees’ incomes should increase in two steps in order to pacify the collective bargaining dispute. On May 1st of this year there should be 250 euros more wages; A further increase was to be added on April 1, 2025 – the plan was to increase 4.15 percent in western and 4.95 percent in eastern Germany. The different percentages should help to equalize wage differences between the two parts of the country.
IG Bau had agreed to the arbitrator’s decision after lengthy internal discussions, although they had actually hoped for more – their original demand was 500 euros more wages per month. The employers, in turn, justify their rejection with arguments that the union side considers to be pretextual. The employers’ negotiator, Uwe Nostitz, criticized the arbitrator’s decision for having serious deficiencies. If the wage increase were to occur as intended, this would result in some trainees earning more in their first year of training than in their second. This is a clear violation of the Vocational Training Act. This requires increasing training allowances every year, says Nostitz.
The union side criticizes the fact that such details could have been easily clarified during arbitration; There were many opportunities for further discussions there. But the employers refused to seriously negotiate. “They are now blaming their own inability on the arbitrator,” says IG Bau negotiator Carsten Burckhardt. It can be heard that Arbitrator Schlegel is also said to be annoyed by the employers’ public criticism of his agreement proposal.
The pressure in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute is particularly high
The positions on the question of whether employees’ salaries should increase by a flat-rate fixed amount also show how far apart the two sides’ ideas are. This is particularly important to the union, as the lower wage groups would benefit above average from such a fixed amount – such as the 250 euros provided for in the arbitrator’s award: Since their basic salaries are lower, they would receive a larger percentage wage increase than higher earners such as Foreman or construction manager. From the union’s point of view, this would only be fair, as the high inflation of the past two years has put the greatest strain on low earners.
The employers, in turn, find this unfair. “In some wage groups there were too high increases due to the fixed amount, in others there were only relatively small increases,” said HDB Vice President Jutta Beeke. “We as employers cannot be responsible for that.” Instead, they want there to be a uniform percentage wage increase in order to also recognize the performance of specialists and managers.
The pressure in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute is particularly high for two reasons: The last collective agreement in the construction industry was concluded before the Russian attack on Ukraine; Due to the extremely high inflation in 2022 and 2023, construction workers have de facto lost a lot of money. According to collective bargaining experts, their wages are back to the level of 2016. That is why many employees are pushing particularly hard for compensation.
On the other hand, there is a crisis in the construction industry. In particular, companies that specialize in single- and two-family homes are lacking orders. Because of the increased interest rates on loans, building has become unaffordable for many. From the employers’ perspective, there is hardly anything to distribute this year. The union argues that many companies are still doing well and that the crisis will soon be overcome. In addition, exceptions could be agreed for companies in the red; for example, they could postpone the desired wage increases.
The union now wants to use warning strikes to force employers to follow their course. At the same time, negotiator Burckhardt emphasizes: “We are always ready for serious discussions.”