Erstmals seit acht Jahren: IG Metall beschließt ganztägige Warnstreiks

Frankfurt, Germany - After a span of eight years without such actions, the IG Metall trade union has announced it will implement full-day warning strikes in numerous factories to intensify pressure in ongoing wage negotiations. IG Metall's leadership, represented by President Christiane Benner, stated that the employers' demands had crossed a boundary, pushing the conflict towards a hostile confrontation.

Benner highlighted that employers attempting to erode wage standards, make last-minute concession offers, restrict joint decision-making, and shift decisions from collective agreements into individual workplaces were undermining the foundations of the trade union relationship. Employers in various regions have already criticized the announced strikes as "entirely disproportionate" and warned they would cause significant economic damage.

In Baden-Württemberg, IG Metall has announced it will start voting on warning strikes in the designated factories on Friday. The Bavarian region has decided to cease negotiations with the employers before implementing full-day strikes. Within a year, IG Metall is seeking a 5% wage increase for around 3.7 million employees. Additionally, they aim to secure jobs and locations.

In return, employers have offered a revocable lump-sum payment and a 1.3% wage increase. No resolution has been reached after three rounds of negotiations, and the IG Metall's leadership has indicated that they intend to designate a figure in the hundreds of factories for the current year. The use of full-day warning strikes by IG Metall was first employed a year ago, involving approximately 500,000 workers in 250 factories.

This year, the union leadership plans to designate a three-digit number of factories for the strikes. Union members can apply for strike pay if they participate.