2020 Metal Industry Wage Negotiations IG Metall Proposes a “Future Package”

The metal and electrical industry is facing profound changes. Electric mobility, the digitization of production and products, as well as climate change and the energy transition, are placing high demands on companies. However, the necessary transformation has not yet been set in motion at many companies. As a result, many jobs—and even entire locations—are at risk in the metal and electrical industry. IG Metall refuses to accept this situation.

The clock is ticking. Many companies face decisions about whether and how tomorrow’s future can be shaped with today’s workforces. In addition, there is uncertainty about future economic developments. Especially in times like these, social cohesion requires the greatest possible security and prospects for people.

Following intensive discussions in IG Metall’s regional bargaining committees, it is therefore clear that the demand for fair transition will be a central focus in the upcoming collective bargaining round for the metal and electrical industries.

Proposal to Employers

To shape this transition together with and in the interests of employees, effective and swift solutions are now needed. IG Metall is therefore proposing to employers a“moratorium for fair transition” and negotiations on a “future package.” The goal is for employers, together with IG Metall, to secure the future of employees by refraining from layoffs, spin-offs, plant closures, and relocations—and instead committing, in future collective bargaining agreements, to securing and developing employment, locations, and future prospects through investment and training.

In times of digital and ecological change—the transformation—people need the greatest possible security and prospects. Jörg Hofmann, President of IG Metall, emphasizes: “This is about our future. And we are firmly convinced that it must be 100 percent socially responsible, 100 percent environmentally sound, and 100 percent based on worker participation and democracy.” It is about a fair transition. “Only in this way can the transformation succeed in Germany as an industrial hub. Only in this way can good jobs be secured for millions of workers and social prosperity and cohesion be maintained.”

Concrete Investments

IG Metall therefore calls on employers to face up to their responsibility for the industry and the future of workers—and makes them the following offer: IG Metall and employers will now immediately enter into negotiations on a “future package” in all regions, even before the start of collective bargaining for the metal and electrical industries, which was originally scheduled for mid-March.

In these negotiations, employers are to commit to initiating, at IG Metall’s request, negotiations on future collective bargaining agreements within their companies that include concrete investments and product prospects for locations and employees, as well as a ban on layoffs for operational reasons. Significant emphasis is also placed on training, skill development, and continuing education.

The goal is to reach an agreement on a “future package” and on wages before the end of the peace obligation period.

Deadline: February 3

The metal and electrical industry has suffered from an economic downturn in recent months. It must also navigate the digital and ecological transitions. However, many employers are exploiting the current situation as a pretext to cut costs, reduce staff, close locations, and relocate work in order to maximize their profits. That is why IG Metall is taking action.

The problems are here now. And that’s why we need good and swift solutions right now. Employers are called upon to decide by the IG Metall Executive Board meeting on February 3 whether they will agree to early negotiations on the “Future Package.”

Strengthening Purchasing Power

IG Metall is once again aiming to strengthen workers’ purchasing power in this round of collective bargaining. Private consumption is the most important driver of gross domestic product growth. Safeguarding real incomes therefore remains essential for the economy as a whole. However, ahead of the potentially upcoming negotiations on the “Future Package,” there is no specific demand regarding the amount by which wages should be increased.

For companies where certain employee groups are underutilized, IG Metall wants to prioritize reducing the workload without cutting pay. This could be achieved, for example, through the use of working time accounts, short-time work with top-up payments, and reduced working hours with partial wage compensation. There should also be access to subsidized training for all employees. Another goal is to increase the proportion of employees who can retire early through partial retirement and other flexible transition models.

Bonus for IG Metall Members

IG Metall members are to receive additional payments in the future to help cover the extra costs of eco-friendly mobility and energy—for example, as subsidies for local public transit tickets, for charging electric vehicles, for leasing e-bikes, or as subsidies for green electricity contracts based on renewable energy.

IG Metall is discussing these and other negotiation goals in detail at the workplace and in collective bargaining committees.

Politicians Must Also Step Up

IG Metall and employers rely on political support to implement the “Future Package” and ensure the success of the mobility and energy transitions. The federal government and the Bundestag must now create the framework conditions for collective bargaining agreements based on this package. The bargaining partners are calling for the following measures:

• Easier access to short-time work and an extension of the benefit period to 24 months.
• The expansion of the Qualification Opportunities Act so that, in the future, entire groups of workers can apply for training measures. So far, it has been tailored only to individual cases.
• An extension of the short-time work transfer allowance to 24 months, as well as the expansion of access to these measures to all employees, not just unskilled workers and older workers.

A moratorium for a fair transition
Annual press conference with livestream