Ranking globally, Germany lands in the intermediate group, or mid-tier nations.
In 2023, Germany experienced a wave of labor strikes, but compared to other nations, it still falls in the lower-tier category. This revelation was shared in a report published by the Economic and Social Science Institute (WSI) of the labor-related Hans-Böckler Foundation on a Thursday.
Many countries experienced more strikes, as indicated by the average number of lost workdays per 1000 employees over the past decade. Belgium held the lead with 103 strike days annually, followed closely by France (92 in the private sector), Finland (90), and Canada (83). Germany clocked in at a lower 18 strike days per year.
Surprisingly, despite the lower strike frequency, Germany had higher strike readiness in 2023. The WSI tallied 312 labor disputes and over 850,000 strikers. The total lost working days for the year reached a staggering 1.5 million, marking a significant increase from 2022's 674 days. This figure also represents the highest since 2015, when a daunting 2 million working days were affected by strikes. The researchers attributed this trend to the high inflation rates and the real wage losses experienced by employees.
Bettina Kohlrausch, WSI's scientific director, viewed the high strike participation as a positive sign. She expressed that this increased engagement fosters trust that employees can positively influence their working and living conditions and fortifies democracy in Germany. The researchers predict another labor-dispute-heavy year for 2024, primarily due to Germany's relatively restrictive strike law, making more extensive strikes possible in several other countries.
Read also:
- Despite having a lower frequency of strikes compared to countries like Belgium, France, Finland, and Canada, Germany experienced a higher number of labor disputes and strikers in the midfield of global economies, as argued by Bettina Kohlrausch from the WSI.
- The Federal Republic of Germany's midfield position in global rankings, where it falls between intermediate and tier nations, was not impacted substantially by the 2023 labor disputes, but the country's more restrictive strike law could potentially lead to more intensive strikes in other countries in the coming year.
- In terms of midfield comparisons, Germany's labor disputes and strikes in 2023 show a contrasting picture compared to nations like Germany, with a higher volume of labor disputes and strikers, despite a lower average number of strike days.
