Germany's metalworking and automotive sectors are going through a difficult time, with a series of major developments occuring concurrently. We learned on Monday that the management at Volkwagen is planning to close at least three sites, outsource departments, axe jobs and make substantial pay cuts. For their part, employees in the metalworking sector began the first warning strikes of the collective bargaining round overnight, after the employers' offers were deemed insufficient.
Collective bargaining in the metalworking industry and matters at Volkswagen overlap. In the first case, the second meeting of the social partners failed to produce any results. IG Metall is demanding a 7% year-on-year pay rise. The Gesamtmetall federation, sitting on the employers’ side of the table, is offering a 3.6% increase over 27 months and in two stages (1.7% in July 2025 and 1.9% a year later). With no compromise and the legal social truce ending at midnight on Monday 28 October, a...
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Article authors
Thomas Schnee
Freelance