The Federal Association of the German Confectionery Industry (BDSI) and the Food-Genuss-Gaststätten (NGG) trade union have agreed on a new collective agreement for approximately 60,000 employees working in the German confectionery industry as of 22 June 2023m in Hamburg, as part of a third round of negotiations.
The new agreement includes pay increases of EU€350 in the lower tariff groups A to E and €300 for tariff groups F to M. In addition, in this year and next, employees will receive an inflation compensation premium to compensate for the increased cost of living of €500 each. The new collective agreement will last over 14 months, with a requirement for 12.
This agreement will bring strike action to an end in Germany for the confectionery industry, as workers were dissatisfied over pay. A wave of strikes announced by the NGG was blocked by the courts as demands centered around the cost of living crisis and its impact on pay. The Hamburg Labor Court banned planned strikes in nine bargaining regions of Germany.
Upon hearing the planned strikes had been banned, the BDSI expressed relief, writing in a press release: “In eastern Germany, as well as in Baden-Württemberg, Saarland and East Berlin, there is still a peace obligation due to the terms of the existing collective agreements.”
Having reached an agreement, the BDSI say the agreement is a “balanced compromise”. The challenging economic conditions and the challenges for employers have prompted parties to the collective bargaining agreement to negotiate wages for the confectionery industry nationwide instead of in the nine bargaining regions.
“We welcome the fact that we managed to prevent further industrial action and that we reached a collective bargaining agreement after intensive negotiations,” commented Ernst Kammerinke, Managing Director of the BDSI. “The term of 14 months gives companies and employees planning security for incomes well into the year 2024 in an extremely uncertain economic environment.”
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