Private health and social care negotiations start

The collective bargaining committee of health union ver.di at 33 clinics and hospitals owned by the Fresenisu-Helios company is calling for a 6.5% wage increase in the negotiations that got underway at the end of January. The negotiations cover 23000 in 33 facilities. Other parts of the Fresenius group are covered by different agreements while around 10000 workers in various subsidiaries and service companies are not covered by a collective agreement. Ver.di is also looking for extra time off to relieve the pressure on shift workers as well as better pay and conditions for trainees. [Read more

The second round of negotiations covering the 130,000 employees in the private health and social care sector ended after 10 hours without result. The employers didn’t improve their offer of 8.8%, well below the demands of the GPA and vida trade unions for 15% with a minimum increase of €400. They argue that 8.8% is just too low to make the industry more attractive and to address the fact that average pay in the sector is 22% below the national average across the whole economy. A national works council conference was set for 20 November where the unions would discuss further measures, including