Public service - Warning strike in Dresden: drum roll at the Ministry of Finance
Several thousand public sector employees protested outside the Saxon Ministry of Finance in Dresden on Wednesday for pay rises and better working conditions. Teachers and university staff in particular responded to the unions' call for a warning strike. However, employees of Sachsenforst, police officers and stage workers from the Saxon State Theatres also attended the rally in front of the Ministry of Finance. The organizers put the number of participants at 4,500 and the square in front of the Ministry was well filled.
A minute's silence for a pupil killed in an accident
The sound of drums got employees in the mood for the demo and the third round of negotiations for state employees starting on Thursday in Potsdam. The number 10.5 was repeatedly chanted - the unions' demand in the current wage dispute is for a 10.5 percent pay rise, but at least 500 euros per month. Whistles also made the protest loud. At the beginning, however, there was a moment of silence in memory of the accident involving a school bus on Tuesday in the Ore Mountains, in which a pupil died and several people were injured.
After the head of the German Trade Union Federation in Saxony, Markus Schlimbach, Volker Geyer took the floor as deputy federal chairman of the dbb civil servants' association. He said that more and more employees were migrating to the private sector for better pay; in Berlin alone, 2000 people under the age of 45 had done so in the previous year. There are 500,000 unfilled vacancies across Germany. "That is alarming." Employees need better working conditions and more money. Employers are always talking about appreciation and saying thank you - but saying thank you is not the new currency at the Aldi checkout.
GEW: We are currently in a historic education crisis
Burkhard Naumann, head of the Education and Science Trade Union, addressed Saxony's Finance Minister Hartmut Vorjohann (CDU), who is Deputy Chairman of the Collective Bargaining Association of German States. "Anyone who has not submitted an offer after two rounds of negotiations and simply rejects all of our demands is provoking strikes." Wages must keep pace with price developments. More money is needed for education and for an attractive public service. "We are currently in a historic education crisis." Politicians need to change course. Pupils are suffering from underfunding of education and teachers are overworked.
Lea Bellmann from the TV Stud initiative called for a collective agreement for student employees and referred to the precarious situation of those affected. "We are indispensable for research and teaching at our colleges and universities. And yet student employees work at the statutory minimum standards, which are often illegally undercut. Many of us are even employed illegally for important administrative tasks. This is wage evasion at German universities." Fixed-term contracts for a few months, chain contracts, overtime, minimum wage and non-compliance with minimum standards - what sounds terrible is the norm for student employees, she criticized.
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- The warning strike in Dresden was a strong demonstration of discontent among public sector employees in Saxony, including teachers and university staff, regarding pay rises and better working conditions.
- The drum roll at the Ministry of Finance in Dresden signaled the beginning of the rally, as thousands of public sector employees gathered to express their concerns.
- The unrest in the public service sector has led to a collective bargaining conflict, with unions such as GEW demanding tariffs that keep pace with price developments and provide better working conditions for teachers and other employees.
- Universities in Saxony, including those in Dresden and Potsdam, are also affected by the collective bargaining conflict, as student employees work under precarious conditions and often receive minimum wage or less for their efforts.
- The BMF (Federal Ministry of Finance) has been criticized for its role in the collective bargaining conflict, as Finance Minister Hartmut Vorjohann (CDU) has reportedly rejected all of the unions' demands for wage increases and better working conditions.
- The warning strike in Dresden could have wider implications for education and the public service sector in Germany, as politicians are urged to address the historic education crisis and allocate more resources to education and public service.
- The tension between public sector employees and employers in Saxony and beyond is likely to continue, with further strikes and protests possible until a resolution to the collective bargaining conflict is reached.
Source: www.stern.de
