Frankfurt am Main – In the collective bargaining dispute in the metal and electrical industries, more than 15,000 workers from over 80 companies nationwide have already participated in warning strikes and protests following the end of the peace obligation (as of 2:00 p.m.). The workers aim to emphasize their demands and protest the employers’ inadequate offer. IG Metall is demanding a 6 percent increase in wages and apprenticeship stipends for a period of 12 months, as well as an individual right to reduce weekly working hours to up to 28 hours for a period of up to 24 months. “The strong participation of the workforce in the nationwide launch of the warning strikes shows what they think of the employers’ offer: nothing! They won’t be fobbed off with a measly wage offer. Furthermore, employers must finally abandon their obstructionist stance and engage in constructive talks with us about our demands regarding working hours,” said Jörg Hofmann, President of IG Metall, on Monday in Frankfurt. Hofmann also announced massive nationwide warning strikes for the coming days.
The focus of Monday’s warning strikes was in Baden-Württemberg. There, more than 4,000 workers from eight plants took part in warning strike actions. At Porsche in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, 3,000 workers gathered for a rally in front of the Porsche Museum. Additional warning strike actions took place at Wabco in Mannheim and Valeo Wischer in Bietigheim, as well as at Getrag Magna Powertrain in Rosenberg.
Strong Turnout at the Start of Nationwide Warning Strikes
In the IG Metall Berlin-Brandenburg-Saxony district, nearly 2,000 metalworkers from 16 plants heeded IG Metall’s call. Employees from Otis, MAN, Borsig, KB Powertech, and Robert Bosch Steering took part in the joint rally in the Tegel pedestrian zone.
In the IG Metall district of Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt , around 1,000 workers from ten companies briefly walked off the job. At Wabco in Gronau, around 120 warning strikers heeded IG Metall’s call.
In North Rhine-Westphalia , 750 employees from six plants took part in the warning strike actions.
In the IG Metall Central district, around 700 workers briefly walked off the job, including over 210 workers from Magna Exteriors Systems in Obertshausen and 120 workers from Mahle in Wölfersheim.
In addition, there were further warning strikes and actions in the IG Metall “Küste” district and in Bavaria. IG Metall announced that additional actions were planned for the afternoon and evening.
As early as Thursday and Friday of last week, around 6,000 workers went on a brief strike. In Baden-Württemberg, over 2,800 workers at the Porsche plant in Zuffenhausen took part in a rally. In Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, more than 2,000 workers took part in warning strikes at Bosch in Salzgitter, at the Lenze Group in Aerzen, and at Radio Frequency Systems and Nexans in Hanover. In Brandenburg, around 500 workers at the transmission manufacturer ZF walked off the job for two hours.
