Status: 09/12/2022 4:30 p.m
At the start of the collective bargaining round in the metal and electrical industry, both sides made it clear how far apart their positions are. IG Metall considers wage increases of eight percent to be feasible – employers see them as unrealistic.
Under the impression of a record loss of purchasing power on the one hand and an imminent recession on the other hand, wage negotiations for the metal and electrical industry in Lower Saxony start their first round. Previously, employees and employers made their very different positions clear: Lower Saxony’s IG Metall boss Thorsten Gröger reiterated the demand for eight percent higher wages for twelve months: “It’s five to twelve. The inflationary pressure is enormous, the employees finally need a noticeable relief in your wallet. Eight percent, that’s doable, and that fits in with the times.”
The head of the Lower Saxony Metal Association, Volker Schmidt, countered that such wage increases endangered the existence of many companies in view of escalating energy and raw material costs. He could understand that compensation for inflation was required. “But that would mean the end for many companies at this level. We’re also talking about rescue packages and waves of bankruptcies. Now, above all, pragmatism is required.”
warning strikes announced
The union has already announced warning strikes and other actions. In her opinion, the relief announced by the federal government is not enough to offset the high inflation. Employers, on the other hand, see no scope for permanent wage increases and have brought one-off payments into play.
The region of Lower Saxony/Saxony-Anhalt marks the beginning of this collective bargaining round for the 3.8 million employees in the industry nationwide. Negotiations begin on Wednesday in the traditional pilot district of Baden-Württemberg and in the so-called middle group of Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland.
Employers in Bavaria, where negotiations start on Thursday, described the union’s demand as far from reality. The companies find themselves in an unprecedented mix of serious crises: the Ukraine war, inflation and skyrocketing energy prices, the risk of gas shortages, existing supply bottlenecks and an acute shortage of raw materials, materials and workers, as well as the ongoing corona pandemic are weighing on them Difficult for companies, explained the Association of the Bavarian Metal and Electrical Industry.