Agreement too high. Arguing the difficulties of the small and medium-size firms in their regions, the two regional associations (members of the ZDB federation) esteem that the federal wage rate agreement is “too high”. This agreement for a period of 24 months makes provision for a wage rise in three phases for the 700,000 employees in the sector, starting with a 3.1% increase on June 1, 2007 (cf. story n°70495). Furthermore, the employers consider that the “exception clauses” (Öffnungsklausel) stipulated in the agreement “do not go far enough”. These clauses allow firms with financial difficulties to reduce, with the acceptance of the union, by 8% the wages set by the branch agreements.
ke action. The strike concerns only firms (mainly small and medium-size), members of the two “dissident” employers’ associations. The latter had rejected in early June at the last minute a wages agreement, which had been reached on May 19 after a long conciliation procedure between IG Bau and the two main employers’ federations in the sector: the employers’ federation of the German building industry (HDE), which represents the big firms, and the central association of building firms (ZDB), whic
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