What Membership Offers IG Metall benefits

Our benefits are enshrined in the IG Metall bylaws and are available to all members. Our members are entitled to the following:

Legal Protection

Unpaid wages or even termination: When facing issues with an employer, union members can rely on legal protection—through all levels of the legal system if necessary. All members of IG Metall or another DGB union are entitled to legal assistance. Legal counseling is available immediately upon joining. Legal protection for representation in court is available after at least three months of membership with dues paid in accordance with the bylaws for labor and social law and other legal matters.

All information on legal protection is available here.

Strike Pay (Support During a Strike)

Strikes are not an end in themselves, but they are sometimes unavoidable. In such cases, IG Metall naturally also provides financial support to its members. The support payments—colloquially referred to as “strike pay”—are calculated for each affected member based on the duration and amount of their personal membership dues. Warning strikes are generally excluded from this. For the full-day warning strikes introduced in 2015 (commonly referred to as 24-hour strikes or “power strikes”), the Executive Board may still pay strike pay following a resolution. 

All information regarding strike pay can be found here.

Support in Cases of Disciplinary Action and Lockouts

Those who are active in the union should not suffer any disadvantages as a result. If an employer causes problems—for example, by threatening adverse consequences or by actually imposing disciplinary measures or discrimination such as loss of pay or termination—IG Metall will, of course, also provide financial support to its members, provided they have paid membership dues in accordance with the bylaws for at least 3 months.

Payments for each affected member are calculated based on the duration of membership and the amount of membership dues personally paid. Furthermore, our members must not be disadvantaged if they participate in a strike action decided upon by IG Metall. The same applies in the event of a lockout, provided the strike action was decided upon by the IG Metall Executive Board.

Leisure Accident Insurance

Employees are legally insured against workplace accidents. The situation is different in private life, where everyone must take care of themselves. Leisure time requires protection, and IG Metall offers its members leisure accident insurance at no cost to the member. While leisure accident insurance cannot alleviate the pain, it can at least mitigate the financial consequences.

All information about leisure accident insurance is available here.

Support in Extraordinary Emergencies

IG Metall members who find themselves in an extraordinary emergency due to an unforeseeable event (e.g., a house fire) can apply for financial assistance. This assistance is available either as a one-time payment or as a reduction in dues for up to 12 months. After a personal account of the emergency is provided, the local executive board of the relevant IG Metall office can determine the amount of assistance or the extent of the membership fee reduction.

Natural disasters that threaten livelihoods (such as floods, flash floods, landslides, or tornadoes) require swift, straightforward assistance for affected members. IG Metall provides immediate help, as it did, for example, during the flood disasters of 2013, 2016, and 2021.

Support in the Event of Death

In the event of death, we provide support to our members or their surviving dependents. Benefits are calculated based on the length of membership. The decisive factor is the average contribution for the last 12 months of employment (1 percent of gross income).

All information on support benefits is available here.

Professional Development and Information

We offer numerous seminars on union, workplace, and personal development. Participation is free for members. We provide guides and informational brochures on a wide variety of topics related to the world of work. These can be downloaded exclusively or ordered free of charge. Plus: Every member receives the member magazine *metall*.

All information on this topic is available here.

Active Locally

At our more than 150 local offices, every member can actively participate in our union work. There are project groups, working groups, and events on a wide range of topics.

Find your local IG Metall chapter here.

Perks for Union Members

IG Metall members enjoy many benefits: discounted travel and cultural activities, assistance with income tax, and much more.

An overview of all benefits is available here.

MetallRente

MetallRente is an inter-company pension plan offered by IG Metall and the employers’ association Gesamtmetall. Since 2001, it has provided our members with a company pension plan under reliable terms. All information is available on the MetallRente website.