Berlin In the collective bargaining dispute for around 890,000 employees in the construction industry, the arbitration procedure initially yielded no results, according to the employers’ side. The arbitration had been postponed to October 13 after more than 27 hours of negotiations, announced the Main Association of the German Construction Industry and the Central Association of the German Construction Industry on Thursday evening.
“We are experiencing one of the most difficult collective bargaining in years. We conducted intensive negotiations in which all points were examined constructively. We should take up this good thread of conversation on October 13th, “said the negotiator of the employers and vice-president of the Central Association of the German Construction Industry, Uwe Nostitz, according to the announcement.
The IG BAU federal chairman, Robert Feiger, also spoke of the most difficult negotiations in the construction industry for years. So far there has only been a slight approximation. “We hope that employers will follow the path of common sense and that we will succeed in clearing the stones out of the way in the coming week. But everything is still open: The sword of Damocles from a nationwide construction strike is still hanging over the negotiation, ”said Feiger.
Both sides had started the arbitration talks on Wednesday morning. The President of the Federal Social Court, Rainer Schlegel, acts as the arbitrator. Until Friday, those involved had initially given themselves time to find a solution to the deadlocked dispute. If Schlegel does not find a solution that employees and employers agree to, a nationwide industrial action in construction could arise for the first time since 2002.
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The crux of the negotiations is above all the union’s demand for so-called travel time compensation for construction workers. IG BAU wants at least half a standard hourly wage to be paid as compensation, depending on the individual journey. For distances of more than 100 kilometers, it should be up to two hourly wages. In addition, the union is calling for 5.3 percent more wages and salaries as well as an east-west alignment of tariffs. The employers’ side had submitted a tariff offer with a volume of three percent.
More: The shortage of skilled workers on German construction sites is worsening