Germany: unions declare war on abusive appeal to temporary work and are preparing the final attack to impose minimum wage by May 2011

War on precarious employment and for minimum wage.  “We declare war on abusive appeal to interim, precarious employment and the development of low-wage sectors.  It is high time we organized a new social deal on the employment market” declared Michael Sommer, leader of the Confederation of German Trade Unions (DGB) on Thursday, January 13, 2011 in Berlin.  For the beginning of the year, Mr. Sommer pointed to the fact that German unions’ claim in favor of universal minimum wage amounting to €8.5 gross an hour would be unions’ main hobbyhorse in 2011.  In addition to this point, unions want provisions to be taken so the complete opening of the German labor market to workers from eastern European countries doesn’t lead to a boom in social dumping.  This could be done via an amendment to the Posted Workers Act (Entsendegesetz).  For that reason and for reasons of social justice, Mr. Sommer also wants the principle of “Equal Pay for Equal Work” to be imposed in all sectors and businesses operating in Germany, from the first day at work.  Finally, German unions want legal provisions restricting the duration of temporary employment, for instance forcing businesses to turn a temporary job into a permanent one after a certain time.  Unions also demand the systematic approval of the company’s staff representatives in the event of appeal to interim.  “We can’t and won’t wait anymore” Sommer said regarding the May deadline.  “This is why we need minimum wage, at least in the temporary sector, but ideally everywhere” he added, pointing out that most jobs created since the economic recovery last summer were temporary.