Germany: 6.5 percent increase for construction staff

Pilot agreement for the country.  The agreement signed on March 30 by the social partners in Hessen for a 6.5 percent wage increase in the sector of construction and construction material manufacturers mostly mirrors the good health of a sector where some businesses broke historical records.  In this sector where there is no national collective agreement but 18 regional agreements, the agreement signed at the end of March at first sight only affects the 7,000 employees in the Land.  However, it is a pilot agreement, as is the case in other sectors, and its guidelines should be used for the sector’s 110,000 employees.  “Construction materials are booming and production is having a hard time keeping up.  Clearly, employers wanted to avoid conflict.  Also, many businesses are starting to have trouble renewing their staff” declared Harald Schaum, union negotiator and member of the IG BAU’s management.  On April 1, 2012, Hessen employees will receive a 3.5 percent increase, followed by a 3 percent increase in October 2013.  Apprenticeship pay experiences a record 10 percent increase on April 1, 2012 and 3 percent on April 1, 2013.  The agreement will run until March 31, 2014.  The IG BAU also announced that it would call for a 5.9 percent increase for the coming negotiations for 120,000 farm workers.