Press Release No. 47/2010 IG Metall: “Law against the abuse of temporary agency work is grotesque”

Frankfurt am Main – IG Metall has criticized the draft bill approved by the Federal Cabinet to prevent abuse in temporary staffing as insufficient. “The draft bill presented by the federal minister opens the floodgates to the unchecked elimination of permanent jobs and the expansion of the low-wage sector, and it does not meet the requirements of the EU directive on temporary agency work,” said Detlef Wetzel, second chairman of IG Metall. It is grotesque that the law virtually encourages the abuse of temporary agency work, he added.

Wetzel criticized the Labor Minister for apparently succumbing to the industry’s lobbying interests. “We need a reform of the Temporary Employment Act that finally makes the right to equal working conditions for equal work a reality. The possibility of deviating from this principle must be removed from the law.” This would restore temporary work to the tool it was once intended to be—namely, to meet temporary staffing needs, the union leader emphasized.

At the same time, Wetzel pointed out the legal consequences of yesterday’s ruling by the Federal Labor Court (BAG) regarding the Collective Bargaining Association of Christian Unions for Temporary Work and Personnel Service Agencies (CGZP), which denies the association’s collective bargaining capacity. IG Metall supports those affected in reviewing and asserting their claims. “If there is no valid collective bargaining agreement in place, the staffing agencies are obligated to retroactively pay all temporary workers the difference between their wages and the regular collective bargaining wages of permanent employees,” said Wetzel.