Verdi calls on sports field attendants to go on warning strike
After the second round of collective bargaining for the public sector in the federal states failed to produce a result, the Verdi union has announced the first warning strikes for the weekend in Hamburg. The union announced on Friday that the city's sports field attendants will strike on both Saturday and Sunday. As a result, considerable disruptions and cancellations of planned matches are to be expected. The HSV regional league match scheduled for Sunday at the Sportpark Eimsbüttel will also be affected.
Hamburg's Verdi vice-president Ole Borgard said that even after the second round of negotiations on Friday, the employers had obviously not recognized the seriousness of the situation. "Hamburg's finance senator and chief negotiator Andreas Dressel has seriously advised public sector employees to apply for housing benefit if their salary is not enough to cover their rent." In doing so, he is sending a fatal signal to the Republic. Borgard emphasized that the employees are ready to take to the streets for their concerns. "The whistle has been blown."
The unions are demanding 10.5 percent more income, but at least 500 euros more. Junior staff are to receive 200 euros more. The wage agreement should run for 12 months. For Berlin, Hamburg and Bremen, the unions are demanding a monthly city-state bonus of 300 euros. The demands thus tie in with the wage agreement reached in April of this year for the federal government and local authorities. The Tarifgemeinschaft deutscher Länder (TdL) had made it clear that it considered the demands to be far too high and unaffordable. The third round of negotiations has been agreed for December 7.
Trade unions across different federal states, led by Verdi, are escalating their demands for higher wages in the public sector. In response to the employer's refusal to meet their demands, including a 10.5% income increase and additional bonuses for certain cities, trade unions might consider applying pressure through measures such as trade union actions in public service sectors, potentially leading to disruptions in services like tariffs on sports events.
Source: www.dpa.com
