Binder/Dürtscher: “No offer from employers means we are at zero. The mobilization for a wage fight begins”
Vienna (OTS) – Around 400 works councils from the electrical and electronics industry (EEI) gathered for a conference on April 10th at the ÖGB headquarters in Vienna. After there was no offer from employers to increase wages and salaries in the first two rounds of negotiations, the workforce representatives decided at the conference that works meetings would be held between April 11th and 16th. “After two rounds of negotiations, we are at zero. Despite high inflation, employers have not offered any increases. We are therefore stepping up the pace and starting to mobilize for a wage fight,” say the two chief negotiators on the employee side, Reinhold Binder (PRO-GE) and Karl Dürtscher (GPA).
“Our colleagues in the companies worked hard and hard throughout the year and were put under a lot of strain. “We will work together to ensure that these services and commitment are valued and appropriately compensated,” the resolution states. “The next negotiation on April 22nd will decide what happens next with this year’s round of collective agreements for the approximately 60,000 employees in the electrical and electronics industry. If no conclusion is possible, union action cannot be ruled out,” say Binder and Dürtscher.
We will continue to push for proper wage and salary increases with all our might, after all, after two record years, the EEI was doing very well economically in 2023. “In any case, the profits were decent,” say the two top union leaders and also point to the negotiation-relevant inflation rate from March 2023 to February 2024 of 6.8 percent.
In addition to sustainable increases, the unions are also calling for improvements to the legal framework. This includes easier access to the sixth week of vacation. The anniversary bonus should be redesigned and it should also generally be possible to convert it into free time. It should also be possible to exchange part of the actual wage increase for a week of free time. For skilled workers who have completed an apprenticeship, dual vocational training must be treated equally with higher vocational schools. The new collective agreement is scheduled to come into force on May 1, 2024.
Questions & Contact:
PRO-GE public relations
Mathias Beer
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Web: www.proge.at
GPA Public Relations
Mag. Martin Panholzer
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Mobil: 05 0301-61511
E-Mail: martin.panholzer@gpa.at
Web: www.gpa.at