From the point of view of the federal chairman of the German civil servants’ association dbb, Ulrich Silberbach, the week-old arbitrator’s decision in the wage dispute in the public sector is a good basis for the fourth round of negotiations this weekend. The employees’ side sees a need for discussion, however, above all with regard to the inflation adjustment planned for the first few months, said Silberbach on Saturday before the start of negotiations in Potsdam. “Of course that’s one of the points we’ll talk about later in a small circle.” The employer side sees this point as part of the collective agreement. “We see this as a general benefit.”
The basis for the collective bargaining talks this weekend will be the arbitration recommendation published a week ago. This initially provides for tax and duty-free special payments of 3000 euros in several stages. From March 2024 there will then be a base amount of 200 euros and then a wage increase of 5.5 percent. If no increase of 340 euros is achieved, the relevant increase amount should be set to this sum. According to Silberbach, this means average salary increases of between 8 and 13 percent for employees. That’s going in the right direction, said Silberbach.
For months, the bargaining parties have been struggling over the incomes of 2.5 million federal and local employees. Verdi and the civil servants’ association dbb had declared the third round of negotiations at the end of March to have failed. The Association of Municipal Employers’ Associations (VKA) and the Federal Ministry of the Interior then called arbitration in the hope of finding a solution.
If there is no breakthrough in Potsdam, a ballot could follow among the unions.
