Ver.di boss and the Greens in the Bundestag have joined the call for a legal minimum wage of 15 euros. They referred to a new EU directive.
The ver.di union and the Greens in the Bundestag have called for an increase in the minimum wage to 15 euros per hour, citing an EU directive.
Ver.di boss Frank Werneke told the newspapers of the Germany editorial network that he recommends “every party that wants to be elected by broad sections of the population to make it clear in the federal election campaign that they are supporting 15 euros an hour.”
According to an EU directive, the minimum wage should be 60 percent of the median income – currently just over 14 euros. “Since average wages will continue to rise, a minimum wage of 15 euros an hour will be needed in 2026,” Werneke continued.
Commission: Minimum wage should rise to 12.82 euros
The Commission for Setting the Minimum Wage had decided that the minimum wage should increase from the current 12.41 euros to 12.82 euros in January 2025.
The Greens also spoke out in favor of a higher minimum wage. “We want a minimum wage that people who work full-time can live on,” said Green Party leader Katharina Dröge to the RND newspapers. The Greens wanted to advocate “for a real lower wage limit”. “We propose that the lower limit for the minimum wage, as proposed by the EU, be 60 percent of the median wage. That would mean a minimum wage of over 14 euros for 2024, and just under 15 euros in 2025.”
There had previously been calls for a higher minimum wage from the SPD and the Left Party.
Millions of employees with low wages
According to the Federal Statistical Office, the low-wage sector has shrunk significantly within ten years – but 6.4 million employees in Germany still receive less than 13 euros per hour, one million of them in eastern Germany. This emerges from a request from the Left Bundestag group.
Left Party leader Martin Schirdewan also renewed his call on Monday to increase the minimum wage from the current 12.41 euros to 15 euros.