PRESS RELEASE Workers at car dealerships and auto repair shops are demanding a 6.5 percent pay increase

Frankfurt am Main – To boost purchasing power and secure a skilled workforce, IG Metall is demanding a 6.5 percent pay increase for workers in auto repair shops and car dealerships. Apprentices are to receive a disproportionately higher raise of 170 euros. The IG Metall Executive Board approved this one-year demand on Monday evening in Frankfurt. In addition, the union expects employers to provide solutions to address the special burdens faced by employees.

Nadine Boguslawski, IG Metall’s executive board member responsible for collective bargaining, says: “The industry is doing well overall—despite the manufacturers’ inadequate model strategy with regard to the expansion of electric mobility. Employees at car dealerships are currently selling a particularly large number of used cars. At repair shops, customers have to wait a long time for an appointment due to high workload and a shortage of skilled workers. Many employees are working at full capacity. That’s why it’s now urgently time to ease the burden—both on their wallets and in terms of working hours.”

Survey: Staff Turnover Due to Low Appreciation and High Work Pressure

According to a survey conducted by IG Metall among 12,000 employees, 70 percent rate the economic situation of their companies as good (50%) to very good (20%). At the same time, the strain on employees is very high: More than half (54%) have noticed that an increasing number of colleagues are currently leaving their companies—primarily due to a lack of appreciation and high work pressure.

Sebastian Fersterra, head of the skilled trades division on the IG Metall executive board, emphasizes the value of collective bargaining agreements: “The automotive trade is an industry of the future. Employers must now go full throttle and retain their skilled workers and attract new ones by offering better working conditions through collective bargaining agreements.”

A total of 430,000 people are employed in the automotive trade. 91,000 benefit directly from an IG Metall collective bargaining agreement. The current collective bargaining agreement is valid through March 31, 2025, at which point the no-strike clause also ends. This means that warning strikes will be possible starting April 1.

Collective bargaining negotiations are conducted regionally by the IG Metall districts. The first round of negotiations begins on March 18.

Note for newsrooms: 
For more information on the regional negotiations, please contact the press offices of the IG Metall districts:igmetall.de/presse-bezirke