Union calls for employee protection in major health reforms

The ver.di services union says that it will aim to protect workers' jobs and pay and conditions if affected by the plans of the Fresenius Helios group to buy 43 hospitals and 15 outpatient facilities from the Rhön-Klinikum group. The merger would make the group the biggest in Germany with 117 hospitals. Without existing agreements on employment protection ver.di is concerned that the Fresenius will try to recoup some of the €3 billion cost of the merger by reducing employment costs. The union is also concerned that the monopoly position of the enlarged company will have an impact on patient

The GPA-djp has launched a campaign in protest against a decision by the non-profit pro mente rehabilitation company to apply a poorer collective agreement to all new employees from November this year. The union says that the move from the SWÖ (Austrian social economy) agreement to the Cure and Rehabilitation agreement will mean a massive deterioration of pay and employment conditions for the workers affected. The GPA-djp has set up an online petition to support the campaign.

Earlier this year the Health Workers' Union organised a seminar to discuss the main challenges it faces in relation to health reforms and underfunding of the health services. A major issue is the pay system which includes rates of pay set below the national minimum wage. Although, all workers get the statutory minimum it means that the whole pay structure in the health sector is far too low. The union wants the minimum basic salary in the health sector to start at the legal minimum wage. At the moment, for example, nurses (or first grade qualification) are categorised at wage level 9. They