Wholesale tariff - Wage agreement also reached in wholesale
After more than a year, the wage dispute in the Berlin and Brandenburg wholesale trade has been settled. Both parties reached an agreement on Monday evening, as Verdi announced. The approximately 60,000 employees therefore allegedly received a retroactive wage increase of 5.1% as of October 2023, as well as an additional 5% in May of this year. In May of the coming year, it should allegedly be another 2%.
Additionally, there will be a tax- and tariff-free inflation adjustment bonus of 1,000 Euro for the current year, as well as an increase in tariff-based pension provisions by 480 Euro from January 2025. According to Verdi, this was the longest wage dispute in the wholesale trade of both federal states. "This wage agreement was hard-fought by the strikers," it was stated. The new contract runs until the end of April 2026 and thus has a term of 36 months.
Therefore, within a few days, the second wage dispute in the retail sector in Berlin and Brandenburg has been settled. Last week, the trade association and Verdi reached an agreement in the retail sector. There, the negotiations also lasted for many months.
Following the settlement of the retail sector wage dispute, the United Services Union and trade associations in the wholesale sector of Berlin and Brandenburg agreed to tariff-free inflation adjustments and increased pension provisions. This collective agreement marks an end to the longest wage dispute in Berlin and Brandenburg's wholesale trade, spanning over a year.
The United Services Union celebrated this victory, acknowledging the determination of the strikers in reaching thishard-fought agreement. The new contract will provide a retroactive wage increase of 5.1%, with additional increments of 5% in May 2024 and 2% in May 2025.
Retail trade in Berlin and Brandenburg can expect a similar resolution, as the United Services Union recently settled a wage dispute in the retail sector, ensuring a 36-month contract with an unspecified wage increase. This development raises expectations that the retail sector may soon see its own wage adjustments.
Unfortunately, the ongoing political debates over tariffs in Europe may affect the retail and wholesale sectors in Brandenburg and Berlin, as some parties advocate for increased tariffs in trade agreements, potentially impacting the overall market and labor conditions in these industries.
