The Greens want to get a Federal Collective Bargaining Act through Parliament by the summer break. “Wherever the state acts as a client, you have to pay according to the tariff,” said party leader Ricarda Lang to the “Tagesspiegel”. This should apply, for example, to service providers, food suppliers and lighting technicians at public events. In the future, government money should no longer be spent on wage dumping.
Lang complained that collective bargaining coverage in Germany had fallen by 20 percentage points over the past 25 years. “The collective agreement is a strong lever to renew the promise of advancement and to guarantee good work. Those who work according to the collective agreement earn better on average.”
Just the beginning
The Greens labor market politician Frank Bsirske announced that the government will present the Collective Bargaining Act for the federal government in the coming weeks. “But that can only be the beginning. For example, by making it easier for collective agreements to be declared general,” said the deputy of the “Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung”.
While the employers reject further specifications, the German trade union confederation agrees. “We no longer accept trifling steps: All public contracts, economic aid and supply contracts from the federal government must be included with a comprehensive Federal Collective Bargaining Law,” demanded DGB boss Yasmin Fahimi. Employer President Rainer Dulger, on the other hand, said: “Bargaining autonomy requires mutual understanding and trust.” New specifications for tariff loyalty regulations are counterproductive.
The traffic light parties have agreed in the coalition agreement to strengthen the collective bargaining agreement. For example, public procurement by the federal government should be tied to compliance with a representative collective agreement for the respective industry.
