Image: ROLAND SCHLAGER (APA)
On September 25th, the PRO-GE and GPA unions presented their demands for the collective agreement to the employers in the metal technology industry; five rounds of negotiations later, there is still no solution in sight. The sixth round will take place on Monday. If this fails, the workers are threatening “massive strikes”. There is still no concrete new offer from employers; preparations for the strike are “in full swing,” the APA said.
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While the metalheads had had considerable success in the past, the previous meetings were only short-lived. Yesterday, after a good six hours, the social partners in the Chamber of Commerce in Vienna agreed on a break until next Monday; the demand for 11.6 percent more wages and salaries from the unions is on the table.
“First approaches, but no agreement in sight”
After the interruption, the Metal Technology Industry Association (FMTI) said yesterday evening that there had been “first approaches after intensive and constructive discussions, but an agreement is not yet in sight.” FMTI chairman Christian Knill said: “We took the first steps forward today. But since our positions are still different, we have postponed the negotiations until Monday.”
Video: Siebenhofer (ORF) on the KV negotiations
After the interruption, PRO-GE and GPA stated: “The offer is still unacceptable for the unions, because the proposed wage and salary increase is still well below the inflation rate of 9.6 percent.” Conclusion of the two chief negotiators Reinhold Binder (PRO-GE) and Karl Dürtscher (GPA): “After five rounds, we are still a long way from a conclusion. The employers don’t even seem to want to compensate their own employees for the inflation and that after economic record years and high profit distributions.”
“No deal on Monday will lead to the largest work stoppages in a long time”
If there is no agreement next Monday – the talks will start as always at 11:00 a.m. in the Chamber of Commerce in Vienna Wieden – there would be a threat of “massive strikes”. “It’s a matter of fact. No agreement on Monday will lead to the biggest work stoppages in a long time,” said the two unionists.
The strike statistics in the metal industry show two major work stoppages in the recent past: in 2011 there were strikes in around 200 companies with 100,000 employees and in 2018 in over 240 companies with more than 70,000 employees.
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