Long-term erosion. Reinhard Bispinck, researcher at the WSI institute of the Hans-Böckler union foundation, told Planet Labor that the perfect image of a “good company” in Germany is that of a company with a collective agreement and a works council. “But in practice, this image doesn’t match reality anymore. A lot of businesses don’t have a collective agreement or a WC or, in the worst cases, have neither.” The researcher says that the erosion of the collective agreements system started in the middle of the 90s. Since then, the number of employees working in businesses covered by a sectoral or company collective agreement (Tarifbindung nach Beschäftigten) has constantly decreased, going from 76 percent in 1998 down to 60 percent in 2012 in western Germany, and from 63 down to 48 percent in the east. In 2012, only 34 percent of western companies had a collective agreement – only 21 percent in the new Länder.
Germany: because of the erosion of employers’ organizations and the crisis of the collective agreements’ system, unions call on the future government to step in to stabilize the German model
In theory, it’s a paradox. On the one hand, in Germany, the “social partnership” has been renewed since the 2008/09 crisis, overcome with WCs and unions’ active support, and employers keep praising the advantages of the “independence of the social partners” (Tarifautonomie), who negotiate freely, without State intervention, for pay and working conditions. On the other hand, the collective agreements system is going through a deep crisis. For nearly 20 years, the number of businesses affiliated with employers’ organizations – and therefore covered by collective agreements – has been constantly going down, leading to a rise in wage dumping and worsening working conditions. Faced with this evolution, the Confederation of German Trade Unions (DGB) called on the government about to be formed to reform the “general application” procedure (Allgemeinverbindlicherklärung), whereby collective agreements can be extended to all businesses in a sector, whether they are subject to it or not. In addition to the introduction of general minimum wage, this is one of the key themes in the current negotiations between the CDU and the SPD on the creation of a grand coalition. (Ref. 130669)
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