Verdi massively expands warning strikes in the public sector
The Verdi trade union in Hamburg is planning a new wave of warning strikes next week in the stalled wage dispute for public sector employees in the federal states. From Monday to Thursday, work stoppages are to take place one after the other in various districts, as the union announced on Friday. "Employees from the district offices, schools, the fire department, the state education and counseling service and the state roads, bridges and waterways service as well as employees of Hamburg Service vor Ort of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg are being called out."
On each day of the strike, "the focus will be on one area of public services and technical infrastructure", the union announced. There will be a strike in Bergedorf on Monday, in the Mitte district on Tuesday, Hamburg North on Wednesday and Wandsbek on Thursday.
Verdi is demanding 10.5 percent more income for public sector employees in the federal states, but at least 500 euros more per month. Junior staff are to receive 200 euros more and trainees are to be taken on indefinitely. The union is also demanding a monthly city-state bonus of 300 euros. The Tarifgemeinschaft deutscher Länder (TdL) with its chief negotiator, Hamburg's Senator for Finance Andreas Dressel (SPD), made it clear in the second round of negotiations in Potsdam on Friday that it considers the demands to be far too high and unaffordable.
A breakthrough could be achieved in the third round of negotiations starting on December 7. The negotiations are about salaries for around 1.1 million employees. Around 1.4 million civil servants are also affected, to whom the result is usually transferred. In Hamburg, including trainees, around 46,000 employees and indirectly 42,000 civil servants are affected.
The ongoing wage dispute in federal states has led to Verdi, a trade union, expanding warning strikes in various public services, including district offices, schools, fire departments, and public infrastructure. If the Tarifgemeinschaft deutscher Länder (TdL) and Hamburg's Senator for Finance Andreas Dressel (SPD) do not meet Verdi's demand for a 10.5% wage increase and additional benefits, trade unions may resort to widespread strikes, potentially impacting tariffs and public services.
Source: www.dpa.com
