The United Services Union (Verdi) is preparing for an all-public sector strike. According to information from the Tagesspiegel, there is an internal strike plan for six-week work stoppages. In addition to waste and transport companies, the focus would also be on hospitals.
Current Verdi queries among members in large authorities and public companies – including those in critical infrastructure – have shown that there is an “unprecedented willingness to strike”, as a high-ranking trade unionist said.
In the night to Thursday, the probably decisive session in the negotiations between the public employers and the trade unions will take place – in addition to the DGB association Verdi, this is above all the civil servants’ association. Much will depend on how Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD), who is expected to attend this third round of negotiations in Potsdam, positions herself.
The following applies to bargaining rounds in the public sector: If one of the two sides calls for arbitration after the talks have failed, this must be convened.
A quorum of 75 percent approval for a strike is considered safe
The following scenario is therefore considered likely among Verdi officials: If both sides in Potsdam do not agree and the employer then insists on arbitration, this procedure should take two or three weeks at most – depending on who is used as the arbitrator.
If this process also fails, Verdi called for a ballot among the members of those authorities and companies that fall under the collective agreement for public services (TVÖD) in mid-April. According to the scenario, this also takes three weeks. The usual union quorum of 75 percent approval for a strike is considered safe. Hundreds of thousands of employees could then be on strike nationwide from mid-May.
Verdi negotiates for almost 2.5 million employees who fall under the TVÖD. They demand 10.5 percent more salary, but at least 500 euros monthly plus. Most recently, the municipal employers offered a five percent pay increase in two steps and a one-time tax-free payment of EUR 2,500.
A few days ago, Verdi boss Frank Wernecke spoke at a rally in Cologne of an “extremely high level of participation in the strike”, and in North Rhine-Westphalia alone tens of thousands took part in daily strikes. The warning strikes of the last few weeks meant that treatments that could be planned had to be postponed in many clinics.
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