PRESS RELEASE Resolute start to warning strikes: Workers fight back against a meager offer

Frankfurt – In the collective bargaining dispute in the metal and electrical industries, workers are ramping up the pressure. With strong participation, IG Metall members across Germany have launched the warning strike phase. In total, 10,000 workers briefly walked off the job during the first three days since Saturday (as of Monday, 2:00 p.m.). Their goal is to persuade employers to make an offer worthy of the name.

As early as midnight on Friday, workers at selected plants had walked off the job on short notice. At Bosch in Bamberg, 1,000 workers on the entire night shift across all plant sections ended their shift four hours early. At BMW in Berlin-Spandau, 800 protesting metalworkers formed a human chain. Many other large and small protests took place nationwide outside factory gates. Throughout Monday, additional workforces temporarily went on strike.

Further warning strikes are planned for the rest of this week. The fourth round of regional negotiations is scheduled for early next week. IG Metall is calling on employers to present an improved offer at that time.

IG Metall is demanding an 8 percent wage increase for its members in the metal and electrical industries, with a 12-month contract term. Employers had long been unable to bring themselves to make an offer. Only shortly before the expiration of the peace obligation did they present a meager offer: merely one-time payments totaling 3,000 euros over the next two and a half years.